Grassroots leaders are suspicious about the commitment of three municipality mayoral candidates nominated by the BNP.
Former president of Chhatra Dal Feni municipality unit and former panel mayor of the municipality M Ataul Haque Ashru expressed his belief while talking to the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.
He said: “Fazlur Rahman Bokul, sadar upazila unit general secretary of the BNP, has got nomination from the party. But he was out of the district a few years back and during the time he did anti-party activities. His nephew Hazi Alauddin has been nominated from the Awami League as a mayoral candidate in the Feni sadar municipality.”
He also alleged that Bokul in collaboration with Alauddin had managed nomination from the party. He also apprehended that this nomination will be harmful for the party in the district.
The former mayor said during the tenure of the BNP-led government he was supposed to be killed in crossfire as he was not in the good book of the party then. Bokul was also accused in several cases with different police stations in the district.
Inspector of Feni Model police station Mahbub Morshed told the Dhaka Tribune that Bokul was accused in 27 cases, including murder, rubbery and smuggling.
Meanwhile, Porsuram municipality unit President of the BNP Mustafizur Rahman Masud has been nominated from party’s central committee.
Abu Taleb, upazila unit President of the BNP, raised question about his political stand. He also alleged that Masud had soft corner for the ruling party Awami League because he was the business partner of Nizam Uddin Chowdhury Sajel, incumbent mayor and also mayoral candidate of the Awami League in the municipalty.
He said local leaders and activists thought he was a person who had sympathy for the Awami League and this was not good for the party.
Saifur Rahman Swapan, general secretary of the BNP municipality unit, has got nomination from the party as a mayoral candidate of Daganbuiyan municipality.
President of BNP Daganbuiyan municipality unit told the Dhaka Tribune that it was quite impossible for Swapan to campaign for the election properly as he was bed-ridden. “It will help his rival candidate Omar Farrok, Awami League mayoral candidate, to bag a huge number of vote and also defeat him,” he said.
While talking to the Dhaka Tribune district unit BNP General Secretary Zia Uddin Mister said: “Leaders and activists are dog-tired after being repressed by the ruling party Awami League. In this situation, party has given nomination to the leaders who are reliable.”
He also called party men to work unitedly for party’s interest.