Dhaka: Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin has convened a meeting of the Members of Parliament (MPs) at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban for August 20 for voting in the presidential election. The voting will be held from 2:00pm to 5:00pm in the Parliament session chamber, according to a gazette notification issued by the Election Commission on Tuesday.

According to United News of Bangladesh, the CEC, exercising powers vested under the Presidential Election Act, 1991, and in consultation with the Speaker, has convened the meeting of MPs. A total of 349 MPs are voters in the presidential election. The process is in accordance with Article 5(3) of the Presidential Election Act, which stipulates that if Parliament is not in session, the CEC, in consultation with the Speaker, must convene a meeting of MPs at least seven days before the election.

The presidential schedule announced by the Election Commission on August 6 outlines that nomination papers can be submitted from 10:00am to 4:00pm on August 13. The scrutiny of nomination papers will be conducted on August 16, while the last date for withdrawal of candidature is August 18.

The 11-party alliance, led by the opposition Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, has already nominated Liberal Democratic Party Chairman Col (retd) Oli Ahmad as its candidate for the presidential election. However, the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has not yet announced its presidential candidate, although both camps have collected nomination papers for their respective candidates. This marks the first presidential election involving more than one candidate in 35 years.