Annual report to EC shows BNP, JP, Jamaat spend more than they earn
The ruling Awami League appears to be the richest of 38 registered political parties in terms of last year’s income and expenditure.
Yesterday was the deadline for the submission of their annual audit reports to the Election Commission. Twenty-six political parties have already submitted their reports while eight others, including AL allies Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD-Inu), Workers Party of Bangladesh and Samyabadi Dal of Bangladesh, have sought additional time from the EC.
Asked about the four remaining registered parties, EC Secretary Muhammed Sadique said they would wait for a few days as the parties could have sent their reports by post. After that the commission will issue letters to the parties, asking for audit reports on their income and expenditure of 2012.
Regarding the extension of the deadline, he said the commission in previous years had extended the deadline by 15 days to one month. He, however, declined to say whether the deadline would be extended this time or when the EC would declare the extension.
The Daily Star correspondents managed to get the figures from sources in the political parties but could not get the details.
The numbers suggest that though the ruling Awami League earned more than the other major political parties, the main opposition BNP, its ally Jamaat-e-Islami and Jatiya Party (JP) had spent more than their incomes.
After submitting the party’s audit report, AL Deputy Office Secretary Mrinal Kanti Das said their last year’s earning and spending were higher than those of the previous year.
He, however, refused to disclose details of the report.
“It is up to the commission to publish details of the report,” Mrinal said.
BNP Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi and former minister and Jatiya Party presidium member Tajul Islam Choudhury submitted reports on their parties’ behalf.
Donations from BNP parliament members and well-wishers and monthly fees from leaders and activists at all levels were shown as the main sources of income in the report, Rizvi said.
Political programmes, birth and death anniversaries of the party’s founder Ziaur Rahman and events organised on the national days were the sectors of the major expenditure, he said, adding the party had covered the income deficit with the interest it had received from bank deposits.
JP leader Tajul refused to say anything about the party’s report.
The EC Secretariat issued letters to the political parties on July 11 to submit their reports by July 31.
As per the Representation of the People Order, all registered political parties are supposed to have their last year’s income and expenditure audited and to submit the reports between January and July.
EC Secretary Muhammed Sadique told reporters that the commission would hold a meeting to decide whether it would make the reports public.
Source: The Daily Star
