The Election Commission (EC) today confirmed that 49 candidates are set to be elected unopposed to reserved women’s seats in the 13th National Parliament, with the EC set to publish the gazette tomorrow.

Of the candidates, 36 are from the BNP-led alliance, 12 from the 11-party alliance led by Jamaat-e-Islami, and one is an independent.

Md Moin Uddin Khan, returning officer for the reserved seats and EC joint secretary, announced the development at around 4:00pm today at the EC headquarters in Agargaon, Dhaka.

He said that under the Jatiya Sangsad (Reserved Women Seats) Election Act, 2004, the election schedule was announced on April 8.

The deadline for withdrawal of candidacy expired at 4:00pm today, but no candidate withdrew, he added.

“As the number of nominations matched the vacant seats, all 49 were declared elected unopposed,” he said.

Moin Uddin Khan said the EC has already published the list of valid candidates, and once the gazette is issued, it will be sent to the Parliament Secretariat to arrange oath-taking.

Regarding a High Court order on National Citizen Party (NCP) Joint Convener Nusrat Tabassum’s nomination, he said the court directed the EC to accept and dispose of her nomination within 72 hours.

“We will comply with the court’s instructions,” he added.

In another case, NCP’s Monira Sharmin has challenged the cancellation of her candidacy in court.

Moin Uddin said one candidate has appealed against the EC’s decision, though the commission has not yet received official communication.

Earlier in the afternoon, Monira Sharmin told The Daily Star she had collected a certified copy of the EC’s ruling cancelling her nomination.

“Tomorrow I will file a writ petition with the court,” she said.