BNP alleges irregularities in upazila elections

FE Team | Published: February 20, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

Accusing the government of trying to manipulate the upazila (UZ) polls, BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said on Wednesday no fair election is possible under the current regime, reports UNB.
"Today's upazila elections have once again proved that elections won't be free and fair under the Awami League government. It's in no way possible to hold a neutral election under it," he said.
The BNP spokesman made the remarks while addressing a discussing at the Jatiya Press Club, marking the launching of a book titled 'Bangladeshi Jatiyatabad and Tarique Rahman' by Akhter Mahmud, a Bangladeshi expatriate living in London.
Fakhrul said the government has annihilated democracy in the country on January 5 through holding a voter-less and lopsided polls.
Nearly upazilas of 40 districts went to polls on Wednesday in the first phase of the staggered local body elections.
Justifying their decision of boycotting the 10th parliamentary polls, Fakhrul said the government has established a reign of terror across the country over the national polls and killed over 300 people.
Expressing his grave concern over the growing incidents of extrajudicial killing, he said the government created a horrific situation in the country resorting to extrajudicial killing and forced disappearance.
The BNP leader urged the media to be vocal against the extrajudicial killing and play a pivotal role in stopping the menace.
Meanwhile, BNP Wednesday called daylong hartals for Thursday in eight upazilas under six districts to protest what the party said upazila polls fraud.
The upazilas are Sadar in Meherpur, Sadar and Shailakupa in Jhenidah, Sonatola in Bogra, Bakerganj and Gouranadi in Barisal, Sujanagar in Pabna and Kazipur in Sirajganj.
Addressing a press briefing at BNP's Nayapaltan central office, BNP joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said the local units of the party separately announced the shutdown programmes.
Narrating the various incidents of "election fraud" by the ruling party 'cadres', the BNP leader said Awami League men captured many centres forcing out BNP-backed candidates' polling agents and attacked the opposition leaders and activists in different upazilas during the election.
"Still, we didn't get information from all upazilas. As per the information we've received, it gives us an impression that it's a bizarre polls in which ruling party men are using their clout and capturing polling centres and attacking BNP leaders and activists," he said.
He claimed that the ruling party men forced out their party-backed candidates' agents and captured many polling centres in Bhedarganj upazila in Shariatpur, Nababganj in Dhaka, Doulatpur and Shibalaya in Manikganj, Sonatala in Bogra, Sadar and Kazipur in Sirajganj, Gobindaganj in Gaibandha, Bajitpur in Kishoreganj, Gouranadi and Bakerganj in Barisal, Dighulia in Khulna, Sadar in Meherpur, Shoilakupa and Sadar in Jhenidah, Sarishabari in Jamalpur, Lalmohan in Bhola, Goshairhat in Shariatpur and Sujanagar Pabna.
Rizvi denounced the ruling party men's action to manipulate the first phase of the upazila election.