The Election Commission (EC) on Sunday extended the deadline for submitting applications by new political parties seeking registration by two months until June 22, ahead of the 13th parliamentary election.

“A number of parties have already applied for registration, while many others have sought further time. Considering this, the deadline has been extended until June 22,” EC Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed told reporters.

He said applications must be submitted within the new deadline as per the existing legal framework.

According to the EC Secretariat, a total of 65 political parties applied for registration within the initial deadline that expired on Sunday, while 46 others, including National Citizen Party (NCP), sought time extension.

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The NCP on Thursday last asked the Election Commission to extend the deadline for applying for party registration by at least 90 more days.

On March 10, the Election Commission invited applications from the new political parties by April 20 next to get registered ahead of the next national election.

The EC issued a public notification seeking applications from the parties that are capable of fulfilling the registration conditions mentioned in the Political Party Registration Rules 2008.

New political parties are registered with the Election Commission in line with Article 90A of the Representation of the People Order, 1972.

If a party is registered with the EC, it can contest the national election with its own electoral symbol.