Narayanganj mayoral Election

All but Ivy skeptical of fair polls

The Narayanganj City Corporation (NCC) elections are going to be held tomorrow amid doubts about free and fair polls. All mayoral candidates, except the Awami League's Selina Hayat Ivy, have expressed such doubts.
Campaigning, which began on December 5, ends at midnight on Tuesday. For the first time, the NCC polls are going to be held on party lines. The candidates, especially those of the AL and BNP vying for the mayor's post, went all out to win over voters with attractive promises.
Both the AL-nominated mayoral candidate, Selina Hayat Ivy, and the BNP's Shakhawat Hossain Khan were busy yesterday, going from door to door across the city to seek votes. Thursday’s polling will begin at 8am and continue till 4pm without a break. The home ministry has directed members of law enforcement agencies to discharge their duties properly. A total of 22 platoons of the BGB were deployed on Monday afternoon to maintain law and order. As per the electoral rule, no outsider will be allowed to stay in Narayanganj during polling.  Using loudspeakers in different areas of the city, the Narayanganj district administration on Monday announced a ban on plying of motorcycles till Friday.
Even after assurances from the EC and Narayanganj district administration to keep the law and order situation under control during voting, most of the mayoral candidates, except the ruling party’s candidate, have expressed their doubts about holding of elections in a free, fair and impartial manner. They fear the AL’s local leaders and supporters may control polling stations.  
They said deployment of the Army is a must to make the polls free, fair and acceptable to all, though the Election Commission has already made it clear that there is no need for this.
This correspondent spoke to four mayoral candidates yesterday. They said the EC will have to play a strong role during voting.     
When contacted, the BNP’s mayoral candidate, Shakhawat Hossain Khan, alleged that the AL candidate Ivy and her supporters have been trying to establish supremacy in the city from now on.
“So, if the EC doesn’t play a strong role on the day of polling or deploy the Army, it will not be held in a free and fair manner, as people can’t exercise their franchise being intimidated,” Shakhawat said.
Even the ruling party’s candidate, Selina Hayat Ivy, said that the EC should play a strong role during polling. “Thursday’s polls will be free and fair if the EC and law enforcers play their role properly,” Ivy told reporters during her campaign trail yesterday.
Ivy also said she doesn’t want any favour from her party or the government, as she believes if the polls are held in a free, fair and credible manner, she will win.
When contacted, the Bangladesh Kalyan Party-nominated mayoral candidate, Rashed Ferdous, said: “We doubt the elections will be free and fair. Had the EC decided to deploy the Army for the polls, I would have got a large number of votes.”
The Liberal Democratic Party’s (LDP’s) mayoral candidate, Kamal Prodhan, said the law and order situation in Narayanganj city has deteriorated, as the district administration is not doing its job.     
He also alleged that supporters of the ruling party-backed candidate on Monday demolished one of his supporter’s houses, but the authorities did not take any action.
Another mayoral candidate, Mahbubur Ismail, told The Independent yesterday that the NCC polls are going to be held at a time when the EC has lost its credibility and people have no faith in the commission. “So, I can say that if the EC doesn’t play a strong role during voting, the elections will not be free and fair,” he added.
Over 4.79 lakh voters are expected to cast their ballots to elect a city mayor, 27 ward councillors and nine women councillors (reserved seats).
In the last mayoral elections in 2011, Ivy ran and won against then Awami League-backed Shamim Osman by around 1 lakh votes as an independent. The BNP-backed candidate Khandaker Taimur Alam had withdrawn at the eleventh hour.

Narayanganj mayoral Election

All but Ivy skeptical of fair polls

The Narayanganj City Corporation (NCC) elections are going to be held tomorrow amid doubts about free and fair polls. All mayoral candidates, except the Awami Leagues Selina Hayat Ivy, have expressed such doubts. Campaigning, which began on December 5, ends at midnight on Tuesday. For the first time, the NCC polls are going to be held on party lines. The candidates, especially those of the AL and BNP vying for the mayors post, went all out to win over voters with attractive promises. Both the AL-nominated mayoral candidate, Selina Hayat Ivy, and the BNPs Shakhawat Hossain Khan were busy yesterday, going from door to door across the city to seek votes. Thursdays polling will begin at 8am and continue till 4pm without a break. The home ministry has directed members of law enforcement agencies to discharge their duties properly. A total of 22 platoons of the BGB were deployed on Monday afternoon to maintain law and order. As per the electoral rule, no outsider will be allowed to stay in Narayanganj during polling. Using loudspeakers in different areas of the city, the Narayanganj district administration on Monday announced a ban on plying of motorcycles till Friday. Even after assurances from the EC and Narayanganj district administration to keep the law and order situation under control during voting, most of the mayoral candidates, except the ruling partys candidate, have expressed their doubts about holding of elections in a free, fair and impartial manner. They fear the ALs local leaders and supporters may control polling stations. They said deployment of the Army is a must to make the polls free, fair and acceptable to all, though the Election Commission has already made it clear that there is no need for this. This correspondent spoke to four mayoral candidates yesterday. They said the EC will have to play a strong role during voting. When contacted, the BNPs mayoral candidate, Shakhawat Hossain Khan, alleged that the AL candidate Ivy and her supporters have been trying to establish supremacy in the city from now on. So, if the EC doesnt play a strong role on the day of polling or deploy the Army, it will not be held in a free and fair manner, as people cant exercise their franchise being intimidated, Shakhawat said. Even the ruling partys candidate, Selina Hayat Ivy, said that the EC should play a strong role during polling. Thursdays polls will be free and fair if the EC and law enforcers play their role properly, Ivy told reporters during her campaign trail yesterday. Ivy also said she doesnt want any favour from her party or the government, as she believes if the polls are held in a free, fair and credible manner, she will win. When contacted, the Bangladesh Kalyan Party-nominated mayoral candidate, Rashed Ferdous, said: We doubt the elections will be free and fair. Had the EC decided to deploy the Army for the polls, I would have got a large number of votes. The Liberal Democratic Partys (LDPs) mayoral candidate, Kamal Prodhan, said the law and order situation in Narayanganj city has deteriorated, as the district administration is not doing its job. He also alleged that supporters of the ruling party-backed candidate on Monday demolished one of his supporters houses, but the authorities did not take any action. Another mayoral candidate, Mahbubur Ismail, told The Independent yesterday that the NCC polls are going to be held at a time when the EC has lost its credibility and people have no faith in the commission. So, I can say that if the EC doesnt play a strong role during voting, the elections will not be free and fair, he added. Over 4.79 lakh voters are expected to cast their ballots to elect a city mayor, 27 ward councillors and nine women councillors (reserved seats). In the last mayoral elections in 2011, Ivy ran and won against then Awami League-backed Shamim Osman by around 1 lakh votes as an independent. The BNP-backed candidate Khandaker Taimur Alam had withdrawn at the eleventh hour.