AL candidates win by-polls in Sirajganj, Dhaka

Ruling Awami League nominees secured their places in both Dhaka-18 and Sirajganj-1 constituencies in the by-polls amid noticeably low voter turnout.

According to unofficial results, Md Habib Hasan got the most votes in Dhaka-18 and Tanvir Shakil Joy was elected in Sirajganj-1, defeating their rivals with a considerable lead.

Hasan got 75,820 votes while BNP nominee SM Jahangir bagged 5,369. Voter turnout was only 14.18 percent.

There are 5,77,773 voters under 215 polling stations in Dhaka-18, comprising 14 wards and the airport area under Dhaka North City Corporation.

In Sirajganj-1, Tanvir got 1,88,325 votes while BNP's Selim Reza got 468. Voter turnout was 51.75 percent.

Polling in both constituencies started at 8:00am and continued until 4:00pm without a break.

In Dhaka, police, Ansar and Election Commission officials were seen playing the role of spectators while the rules were broken.

A large crowd of AL supporters and activists was seen on the premises of Baunia Abdul Jalil High School, less than a kilometre from the international airport.

There were five centres in the school.

Inside a booth on the ground floor of a building, where no one except the voter is allowed, two women wearing boat badges were guiding the voters.

When asked, Presiding Officer Mohammad Shahadat Hossain said he was not aware of it.

He went with this correspondent to the booth and found one of the women inside a booth.

"No one can enter the booth. Please don't go there," he told the woman.

On the 2nd floor of a nearby government primary school, a polling agent wearing a white panjabi was seen holding the hand of a voter and taking him towards an EVM machine.

Asked, Presiding Officer Mir Anisur Rahman said it was not possible for officials to patrol all the time.

"I instructed them not to allow anyone except the voters in the booth," he said.

Pointing to a crowd of ruling party men on the school premises, he said, "You understand the situation here."

At a booth for women at Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib Govt Secondary School near Hajj Camp, a man wearing an AL badge cast a vote before this correspondent, apparently manipulating the devices. The photo and other details of a female private service holder appeared on the display when the man wearing a red shirt put his finger on the sensor.

Despite this, the polling officer asked the young man to cast his vote. The man then went to the booth meant for women and cast a vote.

Asked what had been happening, the polling officer left the room without an answer. Within a few moments, the man along with two others approached the correspondent and asked furiously, "Any problem?"

Hundreds of AL supporters were outside the school while the correspondent left the premises.

In Sirajganj, the BNP brought allegations of a lack of peaceful environment.

BNP candidate Selim Reza told the Daily Star that no polling agent of BNP could stay in polling centres because ruling party men drove them away.

AL nominee Tanvir said these were politically motivated allegations.

Md Abul Hossain, district election officer, said the Election Commission had not received any complaints.

CEC COMMENTS

There are many things that the USA can learn from Bangladesh, Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda said after casting his vote at IES School and College.

"We can learn good things from the US as well," the CEC told journalists.

"Counting votes [in the US presidential election] took four to five days, but we can finish counting votes in four to five minutes," he said.

He also binned the BNP candidate's allegations that their polling agents were not allowed to stay in the polling centres. He said the election was peaceful and the BNP candidates had not appointed polling agents in some polling stations.

On the other hand, Election Commissioner Mahbub Talukdar said the quality of Dhaka-18 by-election was worse than the 11th National Election held in December 2018.

Talking to reporters, he said he did not find any BNP polling agents at 69 polling booths at 14 centres.

Only one BNP poling agent was found at a booth, he said.

"Transfer of power will not be normal if the elections are not fair, impartial, participatory and acceptable. If the elections are not acceptable and fair, there are chances of social anarchy," he added.