Awami League nominated mayor candidates have been elected in seven out of nine municipalities in the third phase of the municipal election.
The mayor’s posts in the two other municipalities have gone to two independent aspirants, who are also leaders of the ruling party.
Though there were no reports of any major violence, the voting was held in the nine municipalities from 8am to 4pm on Wednesday amidst allegations of large-scale irregularities.
The returning officers of the polling areas started announcing the results in the evening, showing that no candidates fielded by the BNP managed to put up any competition.
The BNP, however, alleged that large-scale rigging of votes and take-over of polling centres and accused the Election Commission of inaction.
The party’s mayoral aspirants in Feni’s Chhagalnaiya and in Noakhali boycotted polls, alleging malpractices during the polling.
In Chhagalnaiya, where irregularities were reported within two hours of voting, Awami League’s Md Mostofa was elected mayor, bagging 17,574 votes.
His rival, the BNP’s Md Alamgir, who boycotted election because of alleged foul play, got 764 votes.
The presiding officer at the Chhagalnaiya Pilot High School voting centre, Amzad Hossain, admitted irregularities and said 70 ballots had been cancelled.
In Noakhali’s Sadar Municipality, Shahid Ullah Khan Sohel won with 28,432 votes, while his contender, Harunur Rashid Azad, got 5,998 votes.
In the district’s Senbagh, known as a BNP stronghold, AL’s Abu Jafar Tipu won with 3,890 votes, and his rival, a renegade runner, Abu Naser Dulal, got 3,086 votes.
The ruling party’s controversial local leader, Abu Taher, was elected mayor of the Lakshmipur Sadar Municipality for the third time with 33,350 votes.
His competitor, the BNP’s Rezaul Karim Liton, got 1,868 and lost his security deposit.
In Cox’s Bazar’s Teknaf, Md Islam won with 9,608 votes, while his rival independent candidate Faruk Babul got 408 votes.
In Brahmanbarhia’s Kasba, Emran Uddin Jewel won with 18,485 votes, while his rival Md Ilias Khan got 1,343 votes.
In Narsinghdi’s Ghorhashal, Shariful Haque Sharif won by a huge margin, when he bagged 38, 792 votes and his BNP contender Jahangir Hossain got 1,000 votes.
In the district’s Raipura, Awami League leader Jamal Molla, who ran independently after failing to get the party’s nod, was elected mayor by securing 8,951 votes.
His closest rival, BNP’s Abdul Quddus, got 4,556 votes.
In Khagrhachharhi’s Ramgarh, present Mayor Md Shahjahan Qazi Ripon was re-elected with 5,242 votes. The AL leader had joined the fray as an independent candidate.
His rival, the party nominated runner Bishwa Tripura got 4,293 votes.
Elections in 227 municipalities were held on Dec 30 last year in the first phase and in 10 municipalities on Mar 21 in the second phase.
The ruling party bagged 177 mayoral posts, while the BNP took 22, the Jatiya Party one and independent candidates 26 in the first leg.
All 10 mayoral posts went to the AL in the second phase.
Source: Bd news24
