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A total of 1972 candidates have been finalised to contest the vote in 298 parliamentary constituencies during the 13th national elections scheduled for February 12 this year.
The aspirants are now ready to kick off their campaigns after they were allocated respective electoral symbols by the returning officers on Wednesday.
According to information available with the Election Commission (EC), 305 aspirants withdrew their candidature.
As the election process has been rescheduled for Pabna-1 and Pabna-2 constituencies, the total number of candidates will increase further.
Of the total 298 constituencies, Dhaka-12 have got highest 15 candidates, followed by Narayanganj-4 with 13 candidates; Dhaka-9, Dhaka-14, Gazipur-2, and Khulna-1 have got 12 candidates each; Dhaka-17 and Dhaka-16 both have got 11 candidates; while Dhaka-18 has 10 candidates.
Several constituencies including Thakurgaon-1, Chuadanga-1, Chuadanga-2 and Dhaka-2 have as low as three contenders each.
Valid candidates of Dhaka metropolitan area and Dhaka district got their electoral symbols following their allocation by the returning offices of Dhaka divisional commissioner, District Commissioner, and Dhaka Regional election office.
Meanwhile, a number of candidates lodged complaints against each other while they got symbols allocated from returning officers' offices in respective areas, including Dhaka.
During symbol allocation, returning officers also urged the candidates to follow electoral code of conducts.
Symbols were allocated to candidates of Dhaka-13 and Dhaka-15 constituencies at the Returning Officer's office in the Electoral Training Institute in Agargaon.
BNP candidates and representatives of Jamaat-e-Islami contestants filed counter-allegations with the Returning Officer, alleging violations of the code of conduct while receiving election symbols.
BNP candidates received 'rice sheaf' symbol while Jamaat's Amir Shafiqur Rahman received the "Daripalla" symbol.
BNP's Shafiqul Islam Khan Milton said, "We have come here following the code of conduct. It is unfortunate that a particular party did not adhere to it. We came with five people, but they (Jamaat's representatives) brought more than ten."
In contrast, Jamaat's Assistant Secretary General Ahsanul Mahboob Zubair alleged that activists of a rival party have been attacking and harassing Jamaat members, including women.
Jamaat is committed to responsible campaigning and urged the Election Commission to ensure a level playing field, he said.
He also called on the authorities to take effective measures against violence targeting Jamaat activists.
After the allocation of election symbols at the Divisional Commissioner's office in Segunbagicha, Dhaka, Nasiruddin Patwary, chief coordinator of National Citizen Party (NCP), told reporters that he raised a question regarding electoral code violation by BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman.
"As you know, Tarique Rahman went to Karail slum-that caught fire three months ago-- and promised that he would construct flats. This is a direct violation of the election law and rules," he said.
"We are seeing that a show-cause notice has been issued to Nahid Islam, but when Tarique Rahman is openly making such promises, the Election Commission has remained silent," he added.
Of the widely known candidates fighting independently in Dhaka, Dr Tasnim Jara got 'football' symbol to contest from Dhaka-9 constituency.
With the allocation of symbols, expatriates are now allowed to exercise their voting rights through the IT supported postal voting system.
The EC has called on expatriate Bangladeshi voters to complete their postal voting and send it to the nearest post office by 25 January.
This call has been made to ensure that the votes cast by expatriate voters reach the Returning Officers concerned on time, according to a statement issued by the EC.
"If the postal ballots are not posted by 25 January, there is a risk that they may not reach the Returning Officers within the scheduled time," said the statement.
Therefore, expatriate voters have to complete the voting process using the postal ballot and send it to the nearest post office by 25 January, it added.
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