IEB poll Monday

The biennial election to the Institute of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB) will be held on Monday, with around 18,500 engineers from across the country expected to cast their ballots to elect a 10-member executive committee for the next two years.
The voting will take place at 45 centres and sub-centres across the country from 9:00am to 5:00pm. It will elect a president, a general secretary, four vice presidents, and four assistant secretaries of the IEB.
Candidates from two unofficial panels--Bangabandhu Prokaushali Parishad backed by the Awami League and Association of Engineers Bangladesh (AEB) backed by the opposition BNP and Jamaat--will contest in the poll.
The pro-AL president candidate is Shamim Z Bashunia. No-one will vie for the post from the rival panel as Bashunia, who was primarily an AEB candidate, has joined the AL-backed panel in a last moment drama. An independent candidate, Dr MA Kasem, will contest against Bashunia.
On the other hand, three candidates will vie for the general secretary post. The AL backs Nuruzzaman, while the opposition panel's candidate is Miah Muhammad Quayyum. The third general secretary candidate, Sirajul Alam Swapan, will contest independently.
Meanwhile, AEB President ANH Akhtar Hossain complained that incumbent IEB President Nurul Huda had violated the IEB constitution by introducing the pro-AL candidates at a programme at the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet) on December 2. Nurul Huda however denied the allegation.
Chairman of Central Election Commission Md Khizir Khan said they received the complaint but it was not possible for them to take action against it due to time constraint.