Staff Reporter :
BNP leaders on Monday blamed a highly tense situation in Khulna city as the Mayoral polls starts there this morning. Police arrested most party workers in the past weeks and ruling party cadres are intimidating polling agents of BNP mayoral candidate to keep away from polling stations.
BNP Mayoral candidate Nazrul Islam Manzu at a press conference yesterday noon claimed Awami League Mayor candidate Talukder Abdul Khalek is preparing for election engineering with the help of local administration. HE complaints ballot papers will be staffed in the ballot box at night to deny a fair election.
BNP leaders have asked party leaders and workers to stay in the field till the last moment to foil ruling party candidate’s bid to dominate election.
BNP Senior Joint-Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi at a press briefing at the party central office on Monday said the Election Commission has failed to create a level playing field. The local administration is helping what he said the ‘Awami goons’ in creating panic so that voters cannot go to polling centers freely.
The city has now turned into a city of fear, saying general voters are feeling insecure whether they could cast their votes taking risks.
Rizvi alleged that Awami League men equipped with sharp weapons were moving in different city areas to install fair in BNP workers and supporters to keep away from voting centers.
He claimed that BNP mayoral candidate would win in KCC poll at a huge margin if voters were allowed to cast their vote unimpeded. In last Mayoral election in 2013 BNP candidate Moniruzzaman Moni won the city polls by 180,093 votes as against Awami League’s candidate Talukder Abdul Khaleque who had begged 119422. The ruling party wants to win victory for him this time whom the city voters had rejected on the previous occasion, Rizvi said.
Meanwhile, BNP leader Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain on Monday said the government is at work to resist BNP candidate’s victory in Tuesday’s Khulna City Corporation polls by resorting to rigging votes.
“A tense situation is prevailing there and voters are in doubt whether they’ll be able to go to the polling stations in the chaotic environment.” He said. Talking at a discussion in the city, he further said, “Our polling agents are facing threats. Even presiding officers are under threat to deny peaceful election. “The government together with the local administration, police and those involved in voting process are plotting to rig votes.” Desnetri Mukti Parishad arranged the programme at the Jatiya Press Club demanding the immediate release of BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia and Swechchhasebak Dal president Shafiul Bari Babu from jail.
Mosharraf, a BNP standing committee member, claimed that their party mayoral candidate Nazrul Islam Monju is poised to win the election at a big margin if a fair election is held. “No one will be able to resist BNP’s victory if people can cast their votes.”
He said police arrested party’s probable agents while law enforcers asked many not to go to polling stations. “The ruling party together with the administration and police are at work to thwart BNP’s victory.”
