62.02% of newly elected BNP MPs, 15.94% of Jamaat have debts: TIB

The total declared liabilities or debts of elected members of the 13th National Parliament stand at Tk 11,356 crore, the highest compared with the previous four parliaments, according to Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB).

TIB also reported that 62.02 per cent of lawmakers from the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and 15.94 per cent from Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami carry liabilities or debts.

The information was revealed on Monday (February 16) at a press conference held at MIDAS Centre in Dhanmondi, Dhaka, where TIB released a report titled “Observation of the 13th National Parliamentary Election Process Based on Affidavits.”

According to the report, total liabilities of lawmakers were Tk 1,107 crore in the 9th National Parliament. The amount rose to Tk 3,624 crore in the 10th Parliament, Tk 6,423 crore in the 11th, and Tk 10,392 crore in the 12th Parliament. In the latest 13th Parliament, the figure has climbed further to Tk 11,356 crore.

The report states that nearly half of the members of the 13th Parliament are indebted. Party-wise analysis shows that 62.02 per cent of BNP lawmakers and 15.94 per cent of Jamaat-e-Islami lawmakers have declared liabilities.

A comparison across parliaments shows the proportion of indebted lawmakers was 53.68 per cent in the 9th Parliament, 56.01 per cent in the 10th, 51.30 per cent in the 11th, 52 per cent in the 12th, and slightly decreased to 49.83 per cent in the 13th Parliament.

The report also noted that 67.34 per cent of elected members have an annual income exceeding Tk 10 lakh, while 48 lawmakers earn more than Tk 1 crore annually. It further stated that nearly 99 per cent of election candidates violated the electoral code of conduct in some form.