| Submit your comments on this article |
| Bangladesh |
| Religion-based parties face registration hurdle |
| 2008-09-05 |
| The Election Commission (EC) might face difficulties registering Islamic political parties, including Jamaat-e-Islami, as the existing laws do not allow parties to run activities in the name of or on the basis of religion. The Special Powers Act (SPA) 1974 strictly restricts formation of political parties on the basis of religion. In addition to this, new provisions of the Representation of the People Order (RPO) now stand against registration of the Islamist political parties. As of yesterday, 15 Islamic political parties collected application forms for registration with the EC. EC Secretariat officials said the number would increase as parties including Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh and Islami Oikya Jote are yet to collect the forms. |
| Posted by:Fred |