5 AL, independent candidates boycott Noakhali’s Hatia UP polls

Five independent and Awami League-backed candidates of the Union Parishad (UP) polls in Noakhali's Hatia Upazila boycotted the election this morning amid allegations of irregularities and fear of clashes.

The candidates are Zia Ali Mubarak Kallol, AL-backed candidate of Hatiyar Burir Char Union; ATM Sirajul Islam, AL candidate of Jahajmara Union; Nurul Islam, independent candidate of Sonadia Union; Mehraj Uddin, current chairman and rebel candidate from Nijhum Dwip Union; and Abdul Halim Azad, Ishwar Union rebel candidate, reports our Noakhali correspondent.

The announcement came before the voting began around 8am. Fears of irregularities and vote-rigging were behind the decision of boycotting, they claimed.

Zia Ali Mubarak Kallol told reporters at his home at 9:30am that he had withdrawn from the polls due to fear of bloodshed, as there were "criminals" at the polling booths.

Hatia Upazila Election Officer Mohammad Zakir Hossain around 10:30am, the time of filing this report, said that nobody informed him about the boycott officially.