One dies in 5th phase UP polls underway amid violence, stuffing [ Tritiyo Matra News ]

One dies in 5th phase UP polls underway amid violence, stuffing

Local May 28, 2016

At least one person was killed and several others injured as voting in the fifth phase at 720 union parishads across the country began on Saturday amid sporadic violence and stuffing.
The balloting began at 8:00am and continued till 4:00pm without any break.
Meanwhile, 46 Awami League-nominated chairman candidates were elected uncontested unofficially.
In Noakhali, a voter died after being chased by law enforcers at Rajganj Senior Dakhil Madrassah centre in Rajganj union of Begumganj this morning.
The deceased Syed Ahmed, 55, suffered head injuries as he fell down on the ground being chased by the law enforcers around 10:30am, our correspondent reported.
He was taken to Noakhali General Hospital where physicians declared him dead.
In another incident, miscreants snatched 700 ballot papers 20 to 25 minutes before the voting schedule at Kalaraita Government Primary School centre in Kesharpar union of Senbagh.
The district election official, Monir Hossain, also the returning officer, suspended polls here soon after the incident.
The miscreants returned to the centre with sealed ballots and tried to stuff the ballot boxes. But they left the polling centre leaving ballots there as police chased them, the returning officer said.
In Comilla, at least 10 people including a policeman were injured in UP polls violence at Char Swarshwati Government Primary School centre in Titas.
The clash took place among the supporters of Awami League-nominated chairman Habibur Rahman and AL rebel candidate Md Ibrahim Sarkar around 9:30am. Both the groups blasted around eight crude bombs.
Police fired blank shots to bring the situation under control, said Ismail Hossain, duty officer of Titas police station.
Titas police officer-in-charge Md Monirul Islam was among the injured. He was taken to the upazila health complex.
In Brahmanbaria, three Bangladesh Nationalist Party-backed chairman candidates boycotted the election race in three union parishads in sadar upazila on charges of various irregularities.
The chairman aspirants — Abul Kashed of Uttar Natai, Mobarak Munsi of Suhilpur, and Nazrul Islam of Purba Talshahor union — announced the election boycott hours into the start of the balloting.
The candidates pulled out of the race on charge of obstructing their supporters in casting votes, forcing their agents out of the centres and also casting fake votes, United News of Bangladesh reports.
District BNP general secretary Jahirul Haque Jahir confirmed the matter.
According to the Election Commission, around 3,251people are contesting for 720 positions of chairman, around 30,000 for the positions of member and member positions reserved for women.
The commission said that 15 of the 40 registered political parties, including the ruling Awami League and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, were contesting the polls.
Although the parties have nominated only the chairman candidates officially, candidates, mostly backed by AL and BNP, are also contesting for the positions of member and reserved member at almost all wards.
At least 100 BNP-nominated chairman aspirants were reportedly barred from submitting nomination papers by AL activists, the BNP alleged.
Opposition parties, their candidates, independent candidates and many voters have expressed fear that ruling AL activists may resort to violence and stuffing of ballot boxes capturing polling centres as they did in the previous phases of the elections at 721, 618, 639 and 718 unions respectively held on March 22 and March 31, April 23 and May 7.
In the first, second, third and fourth phases, AL-nominated chairman candidates were elected uncontested at 54, 33, 25 and 33 unions while BNP candidates were reportedly barred by AL activists from submitting nomination papers at 80, 80, 81 and 50 unions respectively.
At least 101 people were killed and over 8,000 injured in electoral violence since the announcement of the polls schedule on February 11, according to Sushashoner Janya Nagarik, an NGO working on civic rights.