Dhaka, Jan 17 (.) Bangladesh’s National Citizen Party (NCP) spokesperson Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan today raised the issue of “dual citizenship” of several Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) poll candidates, saying the party was violating the constitution and existing laws ahead of the national election.
Speaking to reporters in the office headquarters in the evening, Mahmud said “We can clearly see BNP candidates flouting the constitution and prevailing laws.
“BNP presents itself as democratic, a champion of democracy, and a pioneer of democratic politics in various forums. But their activities tell a completely different story. They are acting against democracy, the constitution of Bangladesh, and existing laws.”
He further raised concerns over the ongoing electoral preparations, alleging “We had already expressed concerns that this election seems to be following patterns observed in the previous three polls. The appeals hearing today has made these concerns more evident and has even given rise to new worries.”
Another source of tension he pointed out, was the dual citizenship of many of the participants, which he said was a legal, and constitutional violation, and automatically discredited the participant.
“The constitution of Bangladesh clearly states that any person who acquires foreign citizenship, or even expresses allegiance to another country — not just citizenship — loses the eligibility to contest as a member of parliament.
“Yet, we have observed several candidates with dual nationality approaching the Election Commission and acting with impunity. One candidate even brought 200–300 people to the commission,” he said.
Vowing to not let, what he said were loan defaulters and dual citizenship bearers compete in the polls, he remarked “We will continue our legal battle. Candidates who are loan defaulters or hold dual citizenship will not be allowed to contest the election.
“We will fight against them on all fronts — legal, political, and on the streets. We will resist them in the constituencies.”
BNP chairperson Tarique Rahman, while he lived in exile in the UK for 17 years, has officially declared in an affidavit submitted to the Election Commission that he never held dual citizenship. He returned to Bangladesh in late 2025 using a temporary travel pass because he did not have a valid passport.
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