Accept Kader Siddique’s nomination, HC tells EC

Eight days after the Election Commission (EC) declined to accept the nomination of Kader Siddique, president of Krishak Sramik Janata League (KSJL), for Tangail-4 by-polls, the High Court today asked the EC to allow him take part in the election.

The EC scrapped the nominations of Kader Siddiqui and his wife Nasrin Siddique on October 13 on loan default charges.

The HC bench of Justice Miftahuddin Choudhury and Justice Kazi Md Ejarul Haque Akondo today passed the order after hearing a petition filed by Kader Siddique challenging the legality of the EC’s decision.

The commission scrapped the nominations a day after getting a fax from the Credit Information Bureau of Bangladesh Bank, Returning Officer (RO) Mohammad Alimuzzaman told The Daily Star soon after the candidatures were cancelled.

According to the fax, Kader Siddique's firm Sonar Bangla Engineering defaulted on a Tk 10.88 crore loan from Agrani Bank. Nasrin Siddique is a director at the organisation, he said. 

Two more aspirants in the by-elections scheduled for November 10 were also declared disqualified by the RO.

The seat fell vacant after Kader Siddique's brother Awami League leader Latif Siddique resigned from parliament on September 1 over his remarks on Hajj made in the US last year.

Latif Siddique had also been expelled from the AL and the cabinet for the remarks.