Bhola is an estuarine island district located near the Bay of Bengal, from where Bangabandhu Sheikh MujiburRahman was elected a member of parliament (MP) in 1973.
Since the fall of military dictator Hussain Muhammad Ershad in 1990, allfour constituencies of the district have been under the control of either Awami League or BNP. BNP's influence on Bhola's politics started to decline after the 2008 election.
In the 2008 election, Barrister Andaleeve Rahman Partho and Dr Ashikur Rahman Shanto were the main candidates running under BNP's sheaf of paddy symbol for the Bhola 1 and 2 constituencies. Maj (retd) Hafizuddin Ahmed ran for Bhola 3, and Nazimuddin Alam was a candidate for Bhola 4. During that election, every BNP candidate lost to Awami League except Barrister Partho.
Bhola 1 constituency – BholaSadar
Barrister Partho, representing BNP, defeated Awami League Advisory Council member Advocate Yousuf Hossain Humayun for this seat in the 2008 election.
In the last election, current Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed won the seat unopposed.
For the upcoming 11th parliamentary election, Tofail, district Awami League President Fazlul Kader MajnuMolla, Jubo League Presidium member Mahbubur Rahman Hiron and former student leader Hemayet Uddin have submitted nomination forms, among others. Tofail's nomination has reportedly been confirmed for this seat.
District BNP President Golam Nabi Alamgir is the party’s sole candidate. He is reportedly popular among the voters and was elected Bhola municipality chairman and mayor multiple times.
It is yet to be confirmed who BNP’s candidate will be in this constituency. It is unclear whether Partho will seek nomination.
Bhola 2 constituency – Daulatkhan and Borhanuddin
Ali AzamMukul of the Awami League is the current MP for this constituency. The nomination seekers for this seat are Mukul and DrAshikur Rahman Shanto.
In 2008, in Bhola 2, Ashikur lost to Tofail.
For the upcoming 11th general election, Mukul, Ashikur and Advocate Yousuf Hossain Humayun have submitted nomination forms, among others, to Awami League. Party sources said either Mukul or Ashikur will receive the nomination.
Regarding BNP, former lawmaker Hafiz Ibrahim may run for Bhola 2. If he does not run, his wife Mafruza Sultana may contest for the constituency.
Bhola 3 constituency – Lalmohan and Tazumuddin
Nurunnabi Chowdhury Shaon of Awami League is the current MP for this constituency. However, Awami League lawmaker Maj (retd) Jasim Uddin wants to be a candidate for this seat.
In 2008, Jasim Uddin brought the constituency under Awami League's command for the first time by defeating BNP's Maj (Retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed Bir Bikram.
Later, the court gave the verdict that Jasim's participation in the election was illegal,after which Nurunnabi Chowdhury Shaon was elected an MP after defeating Hafiz in the election re-run.
Former lawmaker and BNP Central Vice-Chairman Hafiz will be BNP's candidate for Bhola 3. He was elected an MP six times for this seat, both as an independent and as a BNP candidate.
At least nine candidates, including current lawmaker Nurunnabi Chowdhury Shaon and Jasim, have submitted nomination papers toAwami League. There is the possibility of Nurunnabibeing a frontrunner for this seat.
Bhola 4 constituency – Charfashion and Manpura
Abdullah Al Islam Jakob, deputy minister of environment and forest, has been an MP for this seat since the 2008 election. He is the only candidate of Awami League in Bhola 4.
In the last ten years, the deputy minister has done a lot of development work in this constituency.
As for BNP, the likely candidate is a former MP of this constituency, former Ducsu acting general secretary (AGS) and BNP Central Committee member NazimUddinAlam. According to local BNP sources, Jubo Dal's Central Joint Secretary and BNP's Central Committee member Nurul Islam Nayon will also seek the Bhola 4 nomination.