Voting Begins in Thakurgaon-1 By-Election

Voting began at 8am on Thursday in the by-election to the Thakurgaon-1 constituency, covering Thakurgaon Sadar, Ruhia and Bhulli, with polling underway at 185 centres.

Voting will continue uninterrupted until 4pm.

Voters were seen arriving at polling centres early in the morning, with long queues forming at some locations even before voting began.

Thakurgaon District Election Officer and Returning Officer Md Kamrul Islam said all preparations had been completed to ensure a free and fair election.

Adequate law enforcement personnel have been deployed at every polling centre, while striking and reserve forces are on standby, he said, adding that no complaints had been received so far.

Meanwhile, 12 assistant presiding officers were replaced overnight or early Thursday following complaints and reports of illness. Other officials from the election duty panel were assigned to their positions.

Five candidates in the race

According to the election office, the constituency has 185 polling centres across three upazilas: 113 in Thakurgaon Sadar, 33 in Ruhia and 39 in Bhulli.

The constituency has 515,853 registered voters, including 257,219 men, 258,630 women and four third-gender voters.

A total of 287 voters registered to cast their ballots through the postal voting system, including 249 men and 38 women, according to the election office.

After scrutiny of nomination papers on September 29, six candidates were declared eligible to contest. However, BNP district vice-president Md Obaidullah Masud withdrew his candidacy on October 5 following a party decision, leaving five candidates in the race.

They are Mirza Faisal Amin, younger brother of President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, contesting with the BNP’s sheaf of paddy symbol; Jamaat-e-Islami’s Md Delawar Hossain with the scales symbol; Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan’s Md Abdul Alim Nizami with the banyan tree symbol; Islami Andolan Bangladesh’s Hafez Md Khademul Islam with the hand fan symbol; and Bangladesh Congress candidate Husain Muhammad Omar Faruk with the coconut symbol.

A total of 3,152 election officials, including presiding officers, assistant presiding officers and polling officers, are performing duties at the centres.

Extensive security measures

Security personnel, including members of the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), have been deployed across the constituency. Judicial and executive magistrates have also been assigned to enforce the electoral code of conduct.

Closed-circuit television cameras have been installed at polling centres to monitor the election.

The deployment includes 21 BGB platoons, 251 members of the SRB, 2,272 police personnel and 2,405 Ansar members.

A total of 295 voters applied to cast ballots by post, of which 289 applications were approved and six rejected. Twenty-nine applications came from expatriates.

EC sets up monitoring cell

Election Commission Secretary Akhtar Ahmed said a monitoring cell had been established at the Election Commission building to oversee the overall election situation.

The cell will monitor conditions at polling centres, law and order, and the overall management of the vote in coordination with the BGB, SRB and police, he said.

Surveillance will include body-worn cameras, cameras used by BGB and police personnel, and BGB drones.

The by-election was necessitated by Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir’s election as president on August 20. He defeated Liberal Democratic Party Chairman and retired colonel Oli Ahmed, the candidate backed by the 11-party alliance, by 255 votes.

Following his election as president, the Thakurgaon-1 parliamentary seat fell vacant, prompting the Election Commission to arrange the by-election.