A written complaint has been filed against the Sunamganj district Returning Officer and Deputy Commissioner over alleged bias and irregularities in the Sunamganj-3 nomination process.
Independent candidate Hossain Ahmed has filed a written complaint against Sunamganj district Returning Officer and Deputy Commissioner Dr Mohammad Ilias Miah, accusing him of bias, irregularities, and deliberate non-cooperation in the nomination process for Sunamganj-3 (Shantiganj-Jagannathpur) constituency.
On Tuesday, Hossain submitted the complaint via email to the Chief Election Commissioner, highlighting what he called procedural flaws and unequal treatment during the scrutiny of nominations.
Hossain claimed his nomination was cancelled after alleged inconsistencies were found in the verification of support from one per cent of voters.
While a certified copy of the cancellation order was provided, he said it mentioned only the serial number of the discrepancy without voter names, addresses, numbers, or verification signatures, making it impossible to present a legal appeal.
The complaint also alleges that the Returning Officer’s office refused to provide information when Hossain sought to challenge the nomination of rival independent candidate Md Anwar Hossain. He said his repeated requests for voter verification lists and detailed scrutiny reports were ignored.
Furthermore, Hossain highlighted that while the random selection procedure for checking one per cent of voter support was applied to other disqualified candidates, it was not mentioned in the case of Anwar Hossain, the only validated independent candidate.
Hossain also criticised the extremely limited appeal window—from 5 to 9 January—for obstructing his appeal preparation, which he described as evidence of deliberate conspiracy and serious misconduct.
He demanded that the Chief Election Commission direct the Returning Officer to accept all his applications, provide detailed verification reports, voter data, and rival candidate information immediately, and initiate disciplinary action against the officer and staff.
He also called for a full investigation through the electoral inquiry and judicial committee and national acceptance of the findings.
“I have submitted a written complaint via email to the Chief Election Commissioner, citing non-cooperation, nepotism, and irregularities by the district Returning Officer. I will also submit a hard copy during my appeal against the cancellation of my nomination on Thursday. I expect the Election Commission to support a free and fair election,” Hossain Ahmed said.
