All-EVM polls to 61 zila parishads on October 17

Elections at 61 zila parishads will be held using electronic voting machines on October 17, around four months after the parishads were dissolved by the government.

Election Commission Secretariat's Additional Secretary Ashok Kumar Debnath announced the date for polls yesterday.

September 15 is the last date for submission of nomination papers at those zila parishads, except the three Chattogram hill tracts districts, he added.

The last date of candidature withdrawal will be September 22.

Deputy Commissioners of the districts will serve as returning officers in the elections.

Over a century-old local government body, zila parishads, were revived via the first-ever zila parishad polls that took place on December 28, 2016.

Amid boycotts by the BNP and the Jatiya Party, the ruling Awami League-backed candidates became chairmen in 25 districts, AL leaders running as independents won in 13, and AL leaders won unopposed in 21.

Polls were held in two other districts later.

As per the Zila Parishad Act, 2000, amended in 2022, the administrators will be in office until a new administration is formed.

However, the term of the administrators will not be over 180 days and an individual cannot be an administrator more than once.

According to the law, only the elected representatives of different local government bodies like city corporations, upazila parishads, union parishads, and municipalities will vote to elect a chairman and general members and women members in reserved seats in each zila parishad.

Meanwhile, the by-elections to Gaibandha-5 constituency that fell vacant following the death of ruling Awami League lawmaker and deputy speaker of parliament Fazle Rabbi Miah, will be held on October 12, said the EC.

The last date for filing and withdrawal of nominations is September 13 and September 22. Fazle Rabbi died on July 23.

On April 27, the government appointed administrators to dissolved parishads upon the expiration of their five-year tenure early that month.