Awami League nomination: Who are the surprise picks?

The ruling party Awami League has declared candidates for 298 seats in the upcoming 12th national election.

Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader announced the names of the candidates at a press conference at the party's headquarters in Bangabandhu Avenue on Sunday.

There are many surprise picks in this year's nomination.

The decisions were made by the Awami League Parliamentary Nomination Board at a meeting on Saturday with Awami League President Sheikh Hasina in the chair.

The candidates nominated by their respective parties must submit their nomination forms to the Commission by November 30 in order for the 12th national parliamentary elections to take place on January 7, according to the election schedule.

The ruling party has introduced new faces for 69 seats, while 22 women will directly contest under the boat symbol.

Three current cabinet state ministers — Begum Monnujan Sufian (Labour), KM Khalid (Culture), and Zakir Hossain (Primary and Mass Education) — failed to secure nominations.

Former state minister and MP for Jamalpur-4 (Sarishabari) Constituency Dr Murad Hasan has been excluded as well.

Jahangir Kabir Nanak, Abdur Rahman, Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya, Sanjida Khanam, and Choyon Islam saw their nominations returned.

Newcomers include actor Ferdous Ahmed, cricketer Shakib Al Hasan, Mainul Hossain Khan Nikhil, Rasheq Rahman, Sayeed Khokon, Salim Mahmud, Badiuzzaman Sohag, among others.

Notable omissions encompass Habibe Millat, Pankaj Debnath, Saifuzzaman Shikhor, former IGP Noor Mohammad, and Muhiuddin Khan Alamgir.