Almost all 'elected' unopposed in Feni

Even though Abul Kayes Ripon holds a top post in Feni district Awami League, he could not run for mayor in Feni municipality as an independent since his local MP's men did not let him.

"It seems Feni is different from the rest of Bangladesh as the local police and administration are managed by him [AL MP Nizam Hazari]. Everyone knows who he is. I don't want to mention his name … I have to live here," said Ripon, senior vice-president of Feni AL.

Ripon said he along with four to five of his aides was on the way to the upazila nirbahi officer's office around noon on December 3, the last date for filing nomination papers.

"But they threatened me of dire consequences if I submitted my nomination. I had to return."

This is just one example how elections at the Feni municipality was being manipulated by Nizam Hazari and his men, Kamal Uddin Mahmud, councillor of Ward-8 of Feni municipality, told The Daily Star yesterday morning.

He was forced to withdraw nomination on December 7.

Of 18 councillor posts in the municipality, 16 are set to get elected unopposed, reports a correspondent from Feni, quoting the local election officials.

In Ward-18 and -14, an opponent each remains in the race against AL-blessed contenders braving threat. Both the non-AL runners went into hiding, said their friends and locals.

In Parshuram, all the AL councillor candidates were set to get elect unopposed as there were no opponents, reports a correspondent from Feni.

There were multiple non-AL candidates in four wards but they were "forced to withdraw", said a number of locals.

When asked, Nizam Hazari, who got elected unopposed in the 2014 national election from Feni-2 constituency, said all the allegations were "totally baseless and concocted".

Talking to The Daily Star, Kamal said, "You will be surprised to know that I was threatened and taken to the UNO's office after hours at 5:48pm and made to withdraw nomination."

"I have been elected councillor in the last three consecutive polls. But this time I couldn't run..."

Kamal said, "My father was the acting president of Feni district AL for 10 years. Apart from me, all my family members are involved in the Awami League. I was not allowed to run so that the local MP-blessed could win unopposed."

Asked whether he sought assistance from police and the administration, he claimed that they had advised him not to run citing adverse environment for polls.

"Along with my brother, I went to Deputy Commissioner Humayun Kabir and Additional Deputy Commissioner Enamul Huq, who is also the returning officer, to lodge my request to re-consider me as a councillor candidate as I had been forced to withdraw my nomination. But they said there was nothing they could do."

Asked what kind of threat was issued, Kamal said, "They repeatedly called me over the phone and said they would kidnap my children on their way to school [in Feni Sadar]. They asked why I want victory at the cost of my children.

"They said they would file false cases against my wife for possessing heroine."

Kamal said in the night of December 2, a gang of five to six masked men opened fire on my Baraipur house, shattering windows.

After that, locals advised me to quit.

Nurul Islam, one of the two non-AL councillor aspirant of Feni Sadar, told The Daily Star that although he was able to submit his nomination evading Hazari's men, he was forced to go into hiding.

Moksedul Islam Tipu said he had submitted his councillor nomination from Ward-12 "but I was forced to withdraw as they threatened to kidnap my younger brother".

Tipu said everybody in Feni knows who they are "but I don't want to mention the name fearing dire consequences".

Tipu said Feni was different from the rest of the country. "Here police and administration are mostly managed by the influential people. That's why I didn't file any complaint to either police or the election officials.

"Along with the influential quarters, police also harass innocent people here."

In Dagonbhuiyan, Saifur Rahman Swapan, the only BNP mayor aspirant whose nomination was considered eligible among the three municipalities in Feni, said he went into hiding, after submitting his nomination with police escort, as Hazari's men were continuously threatening him.

"I have locked my house, moved my parents, my wife, children and my niece to another village as Hazari's men threatened to hurt them if I did not withdraw," added Swapan.