Many rebel Awami League and independent candidates have boycotted the polls alleging various acts of fraud committed by their rivals endorsed by the ruling party, including elimination of their agents from polling centres and fake vote casting.
A compilation of reports sent by our correspondents from different constituencies shows that most of the allegations centred on forced takeover of polling centres by Awami League loyalists, further tainting an election already boycotted by the BNP-led opposition alliance.
In Dhaka 15, rebel candidate Eklas Uddin Molla boycotted the polls claiming that polling agents of Awami League endorsee Kamal Ahmed Majumder had cast fake votes and barred his agents from entering the polling centres.
Badiuzzaman Badsha, a rebel contesting Sherpur 2 constituency, and Khorshed Alam Farsha, a Jatiya Party candidate of Sherpur-3, cancelled their candidatures against ruling party nominees Matia Chowdhury and Fazlul Haque Chan alleging vote rigging.
Independent candidate of Jhenaidah 1 Nayeb Ali Joarder said his agents were forced out of 90 polling centres out of the total 110.
Doctor Md Farid Ahmed, a Jatiya Party (JP) nominee from Brahmanbaria 3, alleged “massive vote rigging” and said he found his vote (No 433) already given when he reached the Annada Government High School centre around 10am.
Doctor Shawkat Ali, an Awami League rebel contesting Narayanganj 1 against party nominee Golam Dostagir Gazi, boycotted the election saying his agents were forced to leave nearly 50 polling centres in the constituency.
In Lakshmipur 2, independent candidates Azad Uddin Chowdhury and Advocate Sharif also boycotted the polls alleging illegal interference with the voting process by the Awami League candidates.
Amirul Islam, a rebel candidate from Noakhali 6, raised allegations of irregularities in casting votes in 14 centres.
“My agents were kicked out from those centres,” he said. However, Assistant Returning Officer of the constituency Md. Mohiuddin ruled out any such irregularities.
Taha Yahia, a Jatiya Party candidate against Awami League’s Abdur Rahman Badi in Cox’s Bazar 4, accused his opponent of “driving out” his agents from the voting centres. “The activists of Badi cast around 30-40 votes each, using their influence,” he said.
Sabina Aktar, a Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal-backed independent from Barisal 2, made similar allegations saying “they [ruling party men] did this right under the nose of officials in charge of the centres.” However, his opponent, Advocate Talukdar Md Yunus of Awami League, squarely denied the allegation.
Golam Kibria Tipu, who contested from Barisal 3, said his agents were “barred from performing their duties.” Independent candidate of Sirajganj 5 Ataur Rahman Ratan and Abul Hossain Shikdar of Barguna 2 also boycotted the polls with similar allegations.
