The ruling Awami League supporters, in a frenzy, forcefully took control of polling stations during the fifth round of upazila elections in 73 upazilas, the BNP has alleged.
“Awami League supporters, with the help of local administration and law enforcers, exerted their influence to forcibly take control of many polling stations and stamped ballot papers illegally even before the voting had kicked off. Occupation of polling stations began from yesterday (Sunday) night,” Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, BNP Joint Secretary General, said while addressing a press briefing at the party’s Nayapaltan headquarters in the capital yesterday.
“The frenzy resumed in the morning as they snatched ballot boxes, stamped those, forced out opposition agents and scared off voters,” Rizvi added.
Rizvi alleged that the polling agents of the BNP-backed candidates were not allowed to enter the polling stations.
He criticised the Election Commission for postponing polls in Thakurgaon Sadar upazila.
On Sunday, at a press briefing, the party expressed its concern over vote rigging and said the government had become desperate to win more chairman posts by resorting to electoral fraud and violence as well as creating panic in the polling stations.
Centring the fifth phase of upazila elections, one was killed and some 50 others were injured in the polling areas. Around 55 contenders, mostly BNP-backed candidates, boycotted the polls alleging vote rigging. They also alleged that the ruling party men had illegally stamped ballots.
A total of 73 upazilas, out of a total of 487, went to polls yesterday morning.
On Sunday, the BNP said it was apprehensive of “large-scale vote rigging” by the Awami League men in yesterday’s polls.