Awami League sweeps almost all mayor posts in municipal election

[Riyad]

Electoral debacle for BNP as Awami League sweeps most mayor posts in 234 municipalities
Senior Correspondent, bdnews24.com


Published: 2015-12-31 00:24:17.0 BdST Updated: 2015-12-31 01:56:54.0 BdST

This comes after what analysts say was a ‘suicidal boycott’ of the parliamentary election in 2014 and a failed antigovernment movement in the beginning of this year.

Ruling Awami League candidates with ‘boat’ symbol swept almost all of the mayor posts in the 234 municipalities that went to election on Wednesday.

Polls in Madhabdi Municipality in Narsinghdi have been postponed following violence, reducing the number of municipalities to 233.

According to results pouring in until 1:15am on Thursday, BNP candidates bagged only 21 mayor posts with its ‘paddy sheaves’ symbol in 224 out of 234 municipalities.

The party pitted candidates in 222 municipalities.

The Awami League candidates have run away with 175 posts.

Though the BNP has alleged large-scale rigging, the Election Commission has said the election was ‘peaceful’, despite some ‘sporadic’ incidents.
The Awami League has also said it is happy with the election.

Wednesday’s balloting was the first partisan election to a local government body after the government brought changes to local government election laws.

The mayor candidates fought with party symbols like parliamentary elections.

The people keenly followed as the Awami League’s ‘boat’ and BNP’s ‘paddy sheaves’ went head-to-head for the first time in seven years after the 2008 general elections.

The number of voters in the municipalities – 7.1 million – makes up only 7 percent of the total number of voters.

But the elections to the municipalities in all the districts turned into a battle for prestige for the two major parties.

They provided the Awami League with the opportunity to reconfirm the public mandate it got in the 2014 national election.

The municipal election was a ‘part’ of the BNP’s antigovernment movement. If it won, it would have touted the outcome as a verdict on its demand for caretaker regimes to oversee national elections.

With its candidates staring at defeat in most municipalities, BNP chief Khaleda Zia met the leaders of her party and partners on Wednesday night.

The party has announced that it will come up with its reaction to the polls on Thursday morning.

About 12,000 candidates fought for the posts of 234 mayors, 2,193 general councillors and 731 reserved councillors.

The Awami League mayoral candidates had won uncontested earlier in seven municipalities.

So, voting actually took place in 227 municipalities on Wednesday, including Madhabdi where the polls have been put on hold.

According to the results declared in the 224 municipalities, 27 winners fought independently, but most of them are rebel Awami League leaders.

The BNP rebel candidates won in two municipalities.

Two leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami, which has lost its registration as a political party, have won in two municipalities.

They are Md Hanif of Birganj Municipality in Dinajpur and Nazrul Islam of Chanpainawabganj Municipality.

A total of 20 registered political parties have fought the election.

Besides the Awami League and the BNP, only one from Jatiya Party - Abdur Rahman Mia of Nageshwari Municipality in Kurhigram – has won.

Electoral debacle for BNP as Awami League sweeps most mayor posts in 234 municipalities -
bdnews24.com

 

[kobiraaz]

Disgrace to the nation. This is not election but shameless act by Govt. Aladin from wadiya will be ashamed if he comes to know about this type of election.

 

[Riyad]

......

 

[Rajaraja Chola]

Democracy has spoken. I bet where are BNP fanboys now?!

AL for now is giving growth and jobs which is most important than unimportant religious issues. Kudos to the people.

 

[kobiraaz]

Democracy has spoken. I bet where are BNP fanboys now?!

AL for now is giving growth and jobs which is most important than unimportant religious issues. Kudos to the people.

It's midnight. Please don't force me to post those video of rigging. Even in some places opponent candidates could not vote as their votes were already given the previous night let alone neutral voters

 

[Haroon Syed]

@Maira La speak something on this in bangla..hovering around on Pakistan threads with Bangladesh flag won't serve your purpose.

 

[Plenipotentiary]

Democracy has spoken. I bet where are BNP fanboys now?!

AL for now is giving growth and jobs which is most important than unimportant religious issues. Kudos to the people.

cut it man ! we all know how democracy works in subcontinent.

 

[Rajaraja Chola]

It's midnight. Please don't force me to post those video of rigging. Even in some places opponent candidates could not vote as their votes were already given the previous night let alone neutral voters

Can u tell me any country where 100% peaceful voting is possible? The matter is majority of the voting is peaceful. Moreover observers are present from various countries.

cut it man ! we all know how democracy works in subcontinent.

Well. Subcontinent is not Pakistan. Though now people are selling their votes for money. Even in India

 

[Hiptullha]

Subcontinent is not Pakistan. Though now people are selling their votes for money. Even in India

When it comes to elections, the subcontinent is worse than Pakistan. Election time in India means religion-baiting, caste-baiting, ethnicity-baiting, etc. PML-N activists won't tell PPP activists to go to India and PTI activists don't call ANP activists Nazis or fascists. Places aren't vandalized and murderers aren't defended for votes here.

 

[Kaniska]

When it comes to elections, the subcontinent is worse than Pakistan. Election time in India means religion-baiting, caste-baiting, ethnicity-baiting, etc. PML-N activists won't tell PPP activists to go to India and PTI activists don't call ANP activists Nazis or fascists. Places aren't vandalized and murderers aren't defended for votes here.

Your political parties do not call to go to India because your people love your nation....But in our country there are still bunch of traitors are in politics who thinks that Pakistan is important to them than their own mother land itself...So when we have such people, we have to talk in that language only...

 

[Abdullah S.]

Democracy spoke like this in Syria with 98% votes for Assad as well.

 

[Plenipotentiary]

Well. Subcontinent is not Pakistan. Though now people are selling their votes for money. Even in India[/QUOTE]
yes sir it is.......... ....................... not now, they have been.......

 

[PoKeMon]

Jamatis must be crying river and especially PDF ones.

The fact is AL and Hasina are working hard in developing BDesh and fighting radical islamists. The people of BDesh appreciate and award them.

 

[Jamwal's]

Very few Muslim nations enjoyed/enjoys the modern progressive ideas like democracy and secularism etc etc,most of them along with their media,suffered the boot of Dictators or Military.

I see normal people queuing for voting not RAW agents,their pics on int media is also a sign of free press and free and fair elections.

 

[Riyad]

She just called BNP-Jamaat hyenas.

Keep country safe from BNP-Jamaat hyenas: PM
Observer Online Desk
Published :Saturday, 12 December, 2015, Time : 7:04 PM View Count : 24

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday urged all to strengthen the hands of Awami League so that the country cannot go under the grip of hyenas like BNP-Jamaat.

"Let the hands of Awami League be strengthened so that the parties of hyenas cannot play with the fate of people," she said.

The Prime Minister was speaking at a mammoth gathering at Khanbari in North Medini Mondal in Louhajanj upazila of Munshiganj after inaugurating the river training work of Padma Bridge project at Janzira, Shariatpur and unveiling the plaque its main construction
work.

Sheikh Hasina said the aim of her government is to serve the nation and its people, not to commit destructive politics as BNP and Jamaat do. "We’ve only one job and one aim- to do the welfare of the people and serve them. Not to destroy people, burn people and harm people," she said.

The Prime Minister said BNP making Jamaat as its companion burns people as Pakistani occupation forces did in 1971. "They don't have any affection for people, they cannot do anything for the welfare of people…they can only commit looting, corruption, money laundering and siphon off the money of orphans…they want to make the country dysfunctional," she alleged.

Talking about the allegation of BNP that the government lodging cases against the BNP men who are contesting the Pourasava election, the Prime Minister said, “If their activists burn people to death what else we have to do?.

She also questioned whether these evil elements will be allowed to cheer by hanging flower necklaces in their necks. “Is Khaleda Zia wants it that will never happen."

The Prime Minister said those who kill people through arson, the order givers, the arms suppliers, the planners all be booked. "The trial of each of them will surely be held on Bangladesh soil."

She also made it clear that the government will not allow anyone to play ducks and drakes with the fate of people.

Munshiganj district Awami League organised the rally with its president Mohiudddin Ahmed in the chair.

The rally was addressed, among others, by AL Advisory Council Member Amir Hossain Amu, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader, AL Presidium Members Matia Chowdhury and Nuh ul Alam Lenin, PM's Economic Affairs Adviser Dr Moshiur Rahman, AL joint secretaries Mahbubul Alam Hanif and Dr Dipu Moni, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Kamal, Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan, Food Minister Advocate Kamrul Islam, organising secretaries Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury and Ahmed Hossain, Dr Abdus Sobhan Golap, Fazilatunnesa Indira, Sukumar Ranjan Ghosh, MP and Saghufta Yasmin Emily, MP.

Coming down heavily on the BNP-Jamaat alliance for its violence and atrocities in 2014 in the name of preventing the last general election, Hasina said a total of 157 innocent civilians and 20 members of law enforcement agencies were killed during their mayhem.

They also burnt 582 schools earmarked as election centers and killed presiding officers but failed to prevent the elections, the Prime Minister mentioned.

To foil the trial of the war criminals again in January 2015, Hasina further alleged, the BNP chief along with 68 leaders and workers stayed over three months at her political office and directed their workers to unleash atrocities across the country with a vow to topple the government, but failed.Hasina said Bangladesh would be freed from stigma with completion of the ongoing
trial of war criminals whatever the conspiracy is hatched against it.

She said the country saw no marked development during 21 years from 1975 but Bangladesh is now the role model of development in the world with many big visible developments, including a number of major infrastructure ones.

Terming the withdrawal of fund from Padma Bridge project by the World Bank a conspiracy against the country, Hasina said the bridge is a reality now with country's own resources.She thanked those people of the country who inspired her and stood beside her when she appealed for fund for the mega bridge project, also those who provided lands for the bridge project, and sought their cooperation in completing the project.

The Prime Minister assured them of taking appropriate rehabilitation measures and their children would get opportunities of education and employments. Satellite towns will also be built on both sides of the bridge, she added.

Keep country safe from BNP-Jamaat hyenas: PM