AL, JP top brass eye Rangpur
Over a dozen heavyweight candidates of the ruling Awami League, Jatiya Party and Bangladesh Nationalist Party, including AL chief Sheikh Hasina and JP Chairman HM Ershad, are likely to contest from different constituencies of Rangpur division.
If the JP and AL contest the polls separately, then the former will appear as the main competitor for the latter. However, if the two parties jointly contest the polls, then BNP's poor organisational strength may be a blessing for both.
AL President Sheikh Hasina broke JP's over two-decade long stranglehold on the Rangpur-6 constituency in the ninth parliament election in 2008. She is likely to contest from this constituency, where her father-in-law's house is located, in the next election.
Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad is likely to contest from Rangpur-3 constituency.
Meanwhile, at least 10 AL leaders are trying to get the party's nomination, while JP has at least nine candidates in six constituencies of the district.
Although BNP has poor organisational strength, around a dozen of its leaders are trying to get party tickets to contest in Rangpur.
Elsewhere, two big-shots -- BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and AL presidium member Romesh Chandra Sen -- will fight over Thakurgoan-1 constituency.
Although Fakhrul is the lone candidate from his party, Romesh may also have to ward off challenges by at least four more aspirants of his party who are trying to get nomination here.
Besides, around nine AL leaders and five from BNP are trying to get nomination at Thakurgoan-2 and 3 constituencies.
JP's senior co-chairperson Raushan Ershad, also opposition leader of the parliament, will contest from Gaibandha-5 constituency, where at least 25 AL men are trying to get party tickets to contest in the five constituencies of the district, while BNP has around 16, and Jamaat has a single candidate at each constituency.
BNP's Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi will contest from Kurigram-2 constituency going up-against JP central leader Tajul Islam Chowdhury, who has been elected five times.
In Kurigram, JP has four strong candidates among six in the constituency, while AL risks an intra-party feud as over two dozen candidates are vying to get party tickets. BNP has six candidates and Jamaat has one strong candidate for Kurigam-1.
Cultural Affairs Minister Asaduzzaman Noor is the single candidate of AL at Nilphamari-2, but around 20 candidates are in the race for nomination at three other constituencies of the district. The list is rounded off with around seven candidates from BNP, six from JP and four from Jamaat, with one each for every constituency there.
In Panchagar, BNP's senior leader and former speaker Jamiruddin Sircar may contest from Panchagar-1 for which incumbent lawmaker of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) Nazmul Haque Prodhan, AL district unit General Secretary Anwar Hossain Sadat, the government's a2i programme's people's perspective specialist Naimuzzaman Mukta and Jatiya Party district unit's General Secretary Abu Salek will seek nomination.
At least three AL leaders are working to get the party's nomination at Panchagar-2.
In Dinajpur, five incumbent lawmakers, out of six, are facing intra-party challenges in getting nomination. AL central Organising Secretary and incumbent lawmaker of Dinajpur-2 Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury and Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali are also facing intra-party competitors.
At least 20 AL men are in the race for securing nomination in six constituencies of the district.
However, Primary and Mass Education Minister and incumbent lawmaker Mostafizur Rahman is the lone AL candidate at Dinajpur-5.
BNP is in almost similar situation as at least 15 candidates are competing to get nomination there. The party's standing committee member Lt Gen (retd) Mahbubur Rahman may get priority in Dinajpur-2.
Three JP men, including State Minister for LGRD and Co-operatives, Moshiur Rahman Ranga, are campaigning for nomination at Lalmonirhat-1. JP Co-chairman GM Quader, also Ershad's younger brother, may contest at Lalmonirhat-3
At least eight AL, 10 BNP and seven JP men are in the race for getting party nomination against three constituencies of the district.
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