Pro-BNP body demands polls cancellation, EC\\\'s resignation

Terming Tuesday's city polls a farce, pro-BNP professionals' electoral platform Adarsha Dhaka Andolan demanded on Wednesday annulment of the CC elections and resignation of the Election Commission, reports UNB.
"Yesterday (Tuesday)'s polls were a serious scandalous incident of the nation's history. The total election process turned into garbage due to the Election Commission's waywardness, law enforcers and the ruling party cadres," said platform's member secretary Shawkat Mahmud.
He further said, "We pulled out our candidates from the heinous, farcical and ridiculous polls. Now we demand cancellation of the farcical polls and resignation of the entire Election Commission."
Shawkat Mahmud came up with the demand at a press conference at the Jatiya Press Club.In a written statement, Mahmud said, "We had hoped the April 28-polls would be free and fair. But the EC dashed our hope. What they did yesterday that could be better call a shameless farce instead of an election."
He said they think the EC ensured the victory of the Awami League-supported candidates through a farce in the name of election at the behest of the government. "With this they've made the defeat of democracy certain."
On the other hand, the ruling party men with the help of law enforcers captured polling stations and resorted to massive vote rigging. "The common voters were not allowed to enter the polling stations. The ruling party cadres wearing the uniforms and jackets of Ansar and VDP guarded the polling stations so that no one, excepting ruling party activists, could cast vote without tokens of Awami League."
Addressing the programme, platform's convener Prof Emajuddin Ahmed said, "I'm an elderly person. I'd seen many elections since 1946. But, yesterday's (Tuesday's) polls can only be compared with one held on January 5, 2015."