EC pledges security amid complaints
With the BNP-backed candidates complaining of arrests and threats, Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad yesterday said measures have been taken to ensure a peaceful environment for today's polls.
Foolproof security measures were taken and about 80,000 law enforcers have been deployed in three city corporations for today's polls, he said during a press briefing at the Election Commission's media centre.
Replying to a question, the CEC claimed every candidate had been able to carry out campaign fairly. "It would not be possible if there had not been a 'level-playing field'."
Despite such assurances, the candidates alleged that police had arrested and harassed their campaigners and raided the residences and campaign offices of many BNP-supported councillor aspirants, threatening their relatives not to employ polling agents during voting today.
In addition, more than 50 allegations of police harassment have been filed with the EC over the last one week, but the commission has not examined any allegation yet, according to sources in the EC secretariat.
Meanwhile, BNP leader Moudud Ahmed yesterday evening alleged at least 69 leaders and activists of the BNP, including five councillor aspirants, were arrested by police over the last 20 days.
Police are raiding the houses of polling agents of BNP-backed candidates so that they could not make it to the polling centres, Moudud said during a press conference at the party's Naya Paltan office yesterday.
Police, however, denied having raided the houses and campaign offices of any BNP-backed candidate.
"We've heard of such allegations only from journalists, but no candidate or their supporters have lodged any complaint with us in this connection as of yet," Jahangir Alam Sarker, acting deputy commissioner (media) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, told The Daily Star last night.
Talking to this correspondent yesterday, at least 30 BNP-backed candidates of both the city corporations in Dhaka alleged they had faced harassment from law enforcers.
Around 12 of them said they could not conduct their electoral campaign and had to go into hiding to evade arrest as they have cases filed against them.
Apart from police, the candidates alleged Awami League activists gave threats to and carried out attacks on some BMP-backed councillor candidates.
After visiting the Mirpur-10 roundabout around 9:00pm last night, this correspondent found out that all posters of the BNP-backed mayoral candidate Tabith Awal and the councillor aspirants were torn down by AL activists. The whole area had only publicity materials for the AL-backed candidates.
Ferdousi Ahmed Misti, a BNP-supported candidate of Ward-8 in Dhaka North City Corporation, said on Sunday Shah Ali Police arrested 10 of her female supporters in two raids while they were campaigning for her. Later, they were sent to jail.
Contacted, Officer-in-Charge Selimuzzaman of Shah Ali Police told The Daily Star that they had arrested the campaigners on charges of causing anarchy.
Saidur Rahman Sayeed, BNP-backed councillor of Ward-17 in Dhaka South City Corporation, alleged to this correspondent that a team of police raided his campaign office twice on Sunday between 3:00pm and 4:00pm. During the raid police picked three of his supporters from his office.
Claiming he has no case filed against him, Saidur also alleged that police on Thursday raided his residence at Sukrabad around 5pm and asked him to step aside from the polls and not to send any polling agents in the booths.
Mohammad Iqbal, officer-in-charge of Kalbagan Police Station, denied the allegations saying his force had not conducted any such raids.
Farid Uddin Farhad, BNP-backed councillor candidate of Ward-31 in Mohammadpur area, alleged Sub-Inspector Mahbubur Rahman arrested one his supporters named Bachchu from Shershah Suri Road on Saturday while he was distributing leaflets.
He was later implicated in a "false" case of torching a vehicle which had been filed earlier.
Admitting the arrest, SI Mahbubur said he had arrested him in connection with a vehicle torching case filed in January. Although Bachchu was not named in the First Information Report, he was arrested as his name came during the investigation of the case.
Ariful Islam Arif, a councillor candidate of Ward-19 of Dhaka South City Corporation, alleged AL activists had beaten six of his supporters while they were hanging posters around 9:30pm on Sunday.
However, police filed a case against him and his son alleging that they had attacked AL-backed councillor's vehicle which was used for campaigning, said Arif, a resident of Siddheshwari.
Adarsha Dhaka Andolan, a pro-BNP platform, alleged that AL cadres snatched ballot papers from different polling stations last evening and forced presiding officers of those centres to sign those papers, which is a violation of electoral rules.
In a statement, ADA convenor Prof Emajuddin Ahmed and member-secretary Shawkat Mahmud said the snatched ballot papers are of mayoral candidates.
The polling centres included Dhaka University, Dhanmondi, Mohammadpur and Segunbagicha, the statement mentioned.
However, The Daily Star could not verify ADA's claims.
CHITTAGONG CITY CORPORATION
In Chittagong, BNP leaders said raids were conducted on the residences of most of their leaders and councillor candidates.
To dent the image of the BNP-backed mayoral candidate, colourful posters were pasted in almost all parts of the port city. In the poster, M Manjur Alam, who was the mayor for the last five years, is standing in water, seeking apology from the people for water-logging.
CEC BRIEFING
The CEC at a press briefing at the EC's media centre last evening said the army has been kept as a reserve force to boost mental strength of the voters.
All officers who will carry out electoral duties including the presiding officer and the polling officer have been asked to work impartially, he said.
The CEC also directed law enforcers to ensure security of voters so that they can return home safely.
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