Two key contenders – AHM Khairuzzaman Liton supported by the 14-party alliance and Mosaddeque Hossain Bulbul backed by the 18-party alliance – kicked off their mayoral election campaigns for Rajshahi City Corporation (RCC) yesterday. The campaign began after candidates’ visit to Hazrat Shah Makhdum’s shrine.
Shuvash Chandra Sarker, the returning officer of Rajshahi regional election office, handed election symbols to the candidates. Former RCC mayor AHM Khairuzzaman was handed the “Lock” symbol, which he had contested with during the last election. Mosaddeque got the “Pineapple”. The lone independent candidate, Habibur Rahman, was given the “Spectacles”.
After receiving the symbol, Mosaddeque and the leaders of his party including the former mayor Mijanur Rahman Minu and the BNP city general secretary, Shafiqul Haque Milon, visited Hazrat Shah Makhdum’s shrine at Dargapara. After offering fateha at the there, they started their campaign, distributing leaflets.
In a short speech at the shrine Bulbul requested that the army be deployed during the election to maintain law and order.
AHM Khairuzzaman arrived the shrine at around 12:30pm, accompanied by lawmaker of the Rajshahi sadar constituency Fazley Hossain Badsha, and the president of the Rajshahi city Awami League Bazlur Rahman.
After visiting the shrine, AHM Khairuzzaman kicked off his election campaign. He said if he were re-elected, he would turning Rajshahi into an industrial city, creating job opportunities for the unemployed people of the city. Then he went to his family graveyard at Hatemkhan where he paid tribute to martyred national leader AHM Kamruzaman and others.
Habibur, the independent candidate, also started his election campaign after visiting the Hazrat Shah Makhdum shrine.
Shuvash Chandra Sarker, said there was no need for the deployment of armed forces during the election. There would be a four-tier security arrangement in place on the day of the election, with Rab, the police, BGB and Ansar members to maintain law and order, he said.
