The ruling Awami League is almost ready to participate in the upcoming 12th Jatiya Sangsad (JS) election that is expected to be held in the first week of January, 2024.
Senior leaders of the ruling party said their party will launch the formal campaign for the election through a visit to Sylhet by Awami League president and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina days after her return from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The PM is scheduled to return home on November 8.
According to sources, during her Sylhet visit, Sheikh Hasina would visit the shrines of Hajarat Shahjalal and Shah Paran. She will also address a rally in Sylhet city, where she will launch the election campaign formally like in the past.
AL General Secretary Obaidul Quader on Monday said, "Sheikh Hasina acknowledges the contribution of the expatriates, specially of Sylhet, to the country's economy.”
While visiting the party's office at Tejgaon in Dhaka, he said, "For the development of Sylhet, the Awami League government has extensively constructed roads, bridges and culverts. People of Sylhet also love and like Sheikh Hasina."
According to party sources, the high-ups of the Awami League have almost finalized a list of the possible candidates of the party for all the 300 seats across the country.
Earlier on November 5, the party fixed Tk 50,000 as the price for a nomination form for the upcoming JS polls. Earlier it was Tk 30,000 for the 11th JS polls.
Besides, the election manifesto of the AL is almost complete as a committee led by Dr Abdur Razzaque, one of the Presidium Members of the party, remains busy with it.
The people of the country have given mandates to AL for the last three consecutive times through the democratic elections in 2009, 2014 and 2018. The party is confident of winning further as the present government has done a lot of things for the development, progress and success of the country and its people.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission is also ready to hold the upcoming election on time as per the Constitution and maintain the democratic norms.
The EC earlier said that the Commission has the Constitutional obligation to conduct the next 12th JS polls by January 29, 2024.
The countdown to elections started on November 1.
The Commission also said that they are going to announce the election schedule immediately.
But sources said, a meeting of the Commission with the President is scheduled to be held on November 9 and the EC will announce the schedule after the meeting with the President.
Moreover, the high-ups of all the law-enforcement and intelligence agencies at a meeting with the EC on November 1 said that there is no major hurdle to holding the next JS polls on time.
