Voters hypnotised by eloquent campaign of Mashrafe's wife

It is natural to imagine big crowds cheering Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, the hugely popular cricket star running for a spot in parliament, reports bdnews24.com.

But voters in Narail are also swooned by the skipper's wife Sumona Haque Sumi, who has been stirring up support for her husband in charismatic speeches.

"Vote for victory to your candidate Mashrafe," she told a recent rally, "The new year's sun will be a sun that will herald in development for Narail."

Since then, Sumi's 'sun of development' has caught on as a new phrase amid voters.

It came as somewhat of a surprise because Sumi is not known for making frequent public appearances with her star husband.

Mashrafe, captain of Bangladesh National ODI Cricket team, is competing from Narail- 2- which comprises Lohagara and parts of Narail Sadar - in the election due on Sunday.

But she has been on the campaign trail from the very first, visiting several villages a day and holding street rallies and engaging with women voters.

"We all have an idea of Mashrafe because we watch TV and read the news," said Asmaul Husna, who works at a private firm. "But who knew his wife would be so caring and eloquent."

"She became one of us so quickly. We feel very close. I feel that I can rely on them."

Zainul Abedin, a banker, talked about his fascination with Mashrafe.

He lives in Sumi's village home at Lohagara's Kalagachi.

"I had a chance to speak to Mashrafe's wife a bit. She is a lady. She is polite and has a strong personality. There is nothing new to say about Mashrafe in Narail. But I think his wife is a big force in the election field for Mashrafe," he said.