Finance Adviser Dr Salehuddin Ahmed on Wednesday said the interim government will not allow the loan defaulters to contest the next parliamentary election scheduled for February 2026.
“If political leaders encourage nomination and voting in exchange of money there’s nothing the Finance Ministry can do, ” the adviser said at the launch of the “UPension” app, organised by the National Pension Authority at the Finance Ministry.
He also said that the ministry will extend all necessary cooperation to improve the law and order situation for holding a successful election in February.
According to the current law, loan defaulters cannot contest the elections. Under Article 12 of the Representation of the People Order, 1972, a loan defaulter is ineligible to become a Member of Parliament.
“If one is a defaulter, they cannot run for office,” Salehuddin said, adding that this provision has noften been misused ahead of polls.
“The Election Commission should identify the loan defaulters,” he said, citing former Awami League minister Mahiuddin Khan Alamgir as an example, who had served five years in public office despite being a defaulter.
When asked about measures to curb the use of black money in the election, the adviser said, “The matter has not yet come to us; the Election Commission will be considering the matter.”
He mentioned that there are two aspects of black money — the source and the process. “The source is now more or less blocked compared to how it was in the past. Earlier, the same person could be a bank owner, factory owner, newspaper owner, and flat owner. That’s no longer the case. Now there are some checks and balances.”
About the remarks made by National Citizen Party (NCP) Chief Coordinator Nasiruddin Patwary on Tuesday that “there will be no election in February,” the finance adviser said, “Let them make political statements as they wish.”