Violence, staffing and intimidation marred the third phase voting in the Union Parishad elections across the country yesterday.
Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad however claimed that the elections were comparatively peaceful.
He further said the extent of irregularities and violence was less than that of the two other phases of voting conducted earlier to the lowest tire of the local government.
The CEC informed that the election officials suspected voting in 24 centres. He also said that a large number of voters were seen on the queue to exercise their right to franchise.
“We hope the next phases of elections will be completed without any trouble,” he added.
The voting completed around 4pm amid tight security in most of the local constituencies.
Our Comilla correspondent said two groups of Awami League and BNP supporters clashed in four polling centres in Comilla leaving three people injured.
In Durgapur, at least three batches of ballot papers were snatched away by the supporters of a member candidate from a centre while at two centres in Burichang upazila.
Police fired guns to disperse the troublemakers and detain three persons on the scene.
Our Brahmanbaria correspondent said three television journalists were injured clashes between two rival groups.
The supporter of Awami League backed chairman candidate Shahjahan Mia stormed Chunta AC Academy polling centre and snatched ballots from the centre.
At one stage they allegedly attacked three on duty TV journalists when they were trying to cover the ballot snatching at the scene.
Judicial and executive magistrates, BGB personnel and police had been deployed in the respective areas to maintain law and order.
Meanwhile, two people died from injuries sustained during violence surrounding the union parishad elections.
Forty-year-old Abdul Hannan, who was critically injured during clashes in Rangpur’s Mithhapukur upazila on Wednesday, died in the early hours of Friday at Rangpur Medical College Hospital.
Police said Hannan was injured when supporters of Kafrikhal union member candidates Fakrul Islam and Shakhawat Hossain engaged in a fight on Wednesday in the area’s Mohadebpur Bazar. A total 15 people were wounded in the clashes.
In Mithapukur of Rangpur, candidate Shakhawat filed a murder case accusing 14 people including Fakrul. No one had been arrested so far, reported our correspondent.
Meanwhile, a man named Jewel Mallik, who was injured in an incident of post-polls violence in Madaripur, died on Thursday night in Dhaka after fighting for his life for a week.
Our Madaripur correspondent reported that Jewel was among 15 men, including seven with gunshot wounds, who were injured on April 15 when supporters of rebel Awami League candidate Sohrab Khan allegedly attacked the house of the new union chairman-elect Kuddus Mallik.
The following day, the two sides clashed again when rumours broke out that Jewel – the nephew of Kuddus – had died. At least seven people were injured in the renewed fights.
Madaripur Sadar police station Officer-in-Charge Ziaul Morshed said Jewel’s autopsy had been carried out at Madarpur Sadar Hospital morgue. Additional police have been deployed in the area to prevent further untoward incidents.
In Lakshmipur, voting in two polling centres of Sonapur union in Raipur upazila were suspended following the allegations of capturing the centres, reported our correspondent.
Raipur Upazila Nirbahi Officer Sharmin ordered the suspension of balloting at Sonapur Government Primary School around 10:45 am as miscreants tried to take control of the centre.
Besides, Mainuddin, presiding officer of Rakhali High School in Sonapur union, suspended election at the centre as miscreants attempted to capture it in the morning.
Pro-BNP candidates alleged that their agents were driven out from a number of polling centres by Awami League-backed candidates, an allegation turned down by the ruling party leaders.
Meanwhile, mobile courts arrested a member of candidates at Sonapur Government Primary School polling centre on charges of creating chaos during the polling.
Our Chandpur correspondent said voting in four polling centres in Faridganj upazila was suspended on allegation of capturing the centres and stamping ballot papers forcibly during the elections.
Nurul Amin, a presiding officer of Sreekalia polling centre, said miscreants broke into three polling stations under no 5 Gupti union and started stamping ballots forcibly, creating chaos.
Later, the authorities suspended voting in the centres, including Sreekalia, Nawab Ali High School and Asta Mahamaya High School centres.
Meanwhile, polling in Saisanga Government Primary School polling centre under no 6 Gupti union was also suspended as a group of miscreants stamped ballot papers forcibly after storming it, said presiding officer Bedar Uddin Khan.
At least 70 people were critically injured in clashes during the poll.
According to reports of our Gaibandha correspondent, Mofazzel Hossain and Shahjahan Munshi of Gaibandha union locked in an altercation over taking control of the Porarchar Government Primary School polling centre around 10am.
At one stage, both the groups swooped on each other leaving 10 people injured. Police fired six to seven rounds of bullet to disperse them.
In Jamalpur, 10 people were injured in a clash between the supporters of two union parishad member candidates over taking control of a polling centre in Islampur upazila, reported our correspondent.
According to sources, Of the 25 single chairman candidates, five each are in Kushtia and Munshiganj, four in Narayanganj, two each in Shariatpur, Comilla and Lakshmipur, and one each in Jamalpur, Jhenaidah, Rajbari, Noakhali and Khagrachari.
As per the latest statistics provided by the Election Commission, some 1,450 candidates from 13 political parties while around 1,150 independent contenders are contesting the polls.
Though AL has contestants in all the UPs, its archrival Bangladesh Nationalist Party has no chairman candidates in 81 UPs in this phase.
Besides, 156 chairman candidates of HM Ershad-led Jatiya Party are in the election race.
Meanwhile, 20,943 contestants for member posts and 6,298 candidates for reserved seats (exclusively for women) contesting the election.
Of the contestants, 174 member candidates and 79 candidates for reserved seats have already been elected unopposed finding no rivals against their posts.
Five magistrates four executive ones and a judicial one remained deployed to punish polling irregularities in each of 87 upazilas.
Alongside the magistrates, additional number of police, RAB, BGB, APBn, Ansar and coast guard remain posted in the election areas to maintain electoral environment.
Over three dozens of people have so far been killed in election-related violence since February 11 last, the day the commission announced the schedule for the first phase of the staggered UP elections.
Ruling AL on Thursday last conveyed its party’s chief prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s views to the EC that she does not want to see any anomaly, fault and deviation in the elections.
On March 15, the EC announced the election schedule for the third phase.
In the first two phases of elections held in March last, a total of 87 AL chairman contestants went unopposed, while BNP had no chairman candidates in some 200 UPs out of 1,370.
As part of the EC’s plan to arrange polls to 4,275 UPs out of the country’s total 4,546 in six phases by June next, the commission has so far announced the election schedules for the first five phases.
Sunday, March 23, 2025
