7 candidates to vie for Bogra 6 by-polls

A total of seven candidates from different political parties will contest the by-election to Bogra 6 constituency, slated for June 24.

The last day of withdrawing nomination papers was Monday.

Two candidates, GM Siraj and Rezaul Karim,  submitted their nomination papers with BNP's ticket, but the party picked Siraj as their candidate on Sunday.

The final candidates are: GM Siraj from BNP, SMT Zaman Niketa from Awami League, Nurul Islam Omar from Jatiya Party, Mansur Rahman from Bangladesh Congress, Rafiqul Islam from Muslim League, and independent candidates Syed Kabir Ahmed Mithu and Minhaj Mandal.

Mahbub Alam Shah, returning officer of the by-election and a senior election official of Bogra, said: "A total of 11 candidates from different political parties submitted their nomination papers. Later, the nomination papers of three candidates were cancelled during scrutiny on May 27, while the candidature of BNP candidate Rezaul Karim was automatically withdrawn as the party picked GM Siraj."

He also said electoral symbols will be allocated to the candidates on Tuesday. The voting will take place on June 24. 

The balloting will begin at 9am and continue without a break till 5pm. Electronic voting machines (EVMs) will be used in all 141 polling stations of the constituency.

The Bogra 6 seat was declared vacant on April 30 after BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir stayed away from taking oath, despite being elected as the MP in the 11th general election, held on December 30 last year.

The Election Commission on May 8 announced a new schedule for the by-polls to the constituency, fixing June 24 as the day of the ballot.