Reporter, Print/Digital, The Daily Star
The price cap on 29 commodities exists on paper only as most of those items are being sold at prices higher than those fixed by the government.
Mymensingh and Cumilla cities go to polls today to pick their mayors and councillors, just two months after the Awami League formed a new government.
Despite 13-day-long vigorous campaigning by mayoral candidates in Cumilla City Corporation by-polls that ended last night, there is no apparent enthusiasm among voters.
With incidents of clashes, shootouts, and murders, the ruling Awami League has been reeling from infighting since January’s national polls.
As predicted by many, tensions within the Awami League did escalate in the aftermath of the recently held parliamentary polls, where party nominated candidates faced strong opposition from their colleagues.
The ruling Awami League is considering not picking former lawmakers for the women’s reserved seats in parliament to allow new faces in the Jatiya Sangsad, said party sources.
The reserved seats for women in the 12th national parliament are all up for grabs, and a large number of women – from former MPs to even movie stars – have been seeking a spot on the Awami League’s list of potential nominees.
Against the backdrop of post-election infighting between the Awami League candidates and the “AL independents”, the ruling party is now actively considering not fielding candidates with the “boat” symbol in the upcoming local government polls, party insiders said.
Four newly-formed ones couldn’t bag a single seat in national election
Awami League President Sheikh Hasina’s strategy to make the election look competitive worked well, so much so that over a dozen heavyweights came tumbling down yesterday.
He is not in the election race, and yet he has emerged as an “X-factor” in the polls to three parliamentary constituencies in Gazipur.
After suffering defeats in the last two national elections to independent candidate Mujibur Rahman Chowhdury, alias Nixon Chowdhury, Kazi Zafarullah is in a “tight spot” this time as well in Faridpur-4 constituency.
The electoral race for Faridpur-1 is turning out to be a contest among Awami League’s Abdur Rahman, BNM chief Shah Mohammad Abu Zafar and independent aspirant Arifur Rahman Dolon.
Candidates are campaigning in Faridpur-2 (Nagarkanda-Saltha) for what is likely to be a close race between ruling Awami League’s Shahdab Akbar Labu and independent aspirant Jamal Hossen Mia.
The rifts within local Awami League have put the party candidate Shamim Haque in a tight spot, while the popularity of independent candidate AK Azad among residents of the Padma river chars may give the latter an upper hand in the race for Fardipur-3.
While the ruling Awami League nominees will face strong challenges from their party colleagues running as independents in many constituencies across the country, the picture seems to be quite different in Dhaka.
Despite a series of hectic meetings, repeated assurances, intense negotiations and nail-biting calculations, Awami League seems to have failed to satisfy its allies and electoral partners and, in many cases, even its own ranks.
Though a record number of independent candidates is going to participate in the 2024 national elections, none are contesting in the 32 constituencies where many Awami League heavyweights are running for offices.