Dhaka: A Parliamentary Party meeting of the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has begun at the Sangsad Bhaban here ahead of tomorrow’s presidential election.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the meeting of the BNP Parliamentary Party started at 4:00 pm on the ninth floor of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban with Leader of the House and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman presiding. Prime Minister’s Deputy Press Secretary Jahidul Islam Rony confirmed the details of the gathering.
BNP-nominated presidential candidate Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir was also present at the meeting. The voting to elect the country’s 23rd president is scheduled to commence at 2:00 pm tomorrow in the Jatiya Sangsad chamber and is expected to continue until 5:00 pm.
For the first time in 35 years, the presidential election has more than one candidate, necessitating a vote. BNP and its allies have nominated Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, the Minister for LGRD and Cooperatives and the party’s former secretary general, for the presidential post.
The other candidate in the race is Colonel (Retd) Oli Ahmed, who has been nominated by the opposition 11-party alliance led by Jamaat-e-Islami. A total of 349 members of parliament are eligible to cast their votes in this pivotal election.