Voting free, fair: AL

The Awami League has claimed voting in the second phase of Upazila (UZ) polls has been ‘free and fair’, refuting main contender BNP’s allegations of rigging. “According to our information, voting had been peaceful in all the Upazilas,” HT Imam, the ruling party’s Advisory Council member, said at a press briefing on Thursday night. As many as 115 UZs had gone to polls to elect chairman, vice chairman and female vice chairperson in the second leg yesterday. The BNP, which boycotted the January 5 national elections but decided to contest the local government polls, won chairman posts in 52 UZs and aspirants backed by Jamaat-e-Islami, a component of the BNP-led 19-party alliance, won in eight UZs in the 2nd phase. On the other hand the ruling Awami League-endorsed chairman aspirants won in 45 UZs in the phase-II. The AL had won at 34 UZs in the first phase. Put together, the number of chairman posts won by the 19-party combine in the first two legs is 38 more than what of the ruling party has managed. Results of Sirajganj’s Tarash, Barisal Sadar, and Comilla’s Laksham have not been published. Polling at 11 centres at Barisal Sadar, two at Laksham, and one at Tarash had been suspended, according to bdnews24.com.