Shawdesh Desk:

Voting in the election to Cumilla City Corporation ended peacefully on Wednesday.
The voting began at 8:00am and continued until 4:00pm without any break. No major allegation of irregularities or violence was reported during the election hours.

The authorities have so far detained eight people, mostly outsiders, from two polling stations for trying to cast fake votes and breaching election rules and one of them was jailed for three months, officials said.

Cumilla district administration’s additional magistrate Shahadot Hossain said that three people were arrested at Modern Primary School Polling Centre and one of them was jailed by a mobile court for breaching the election law.

He said that the authorities also detained five other people from Sangraish Primary School Polling Centre for breaching the law.

As there was rain in the city area, the presence of the voters in the polling centres was low in the morning. As the time passed, the presence increased but the turnout was low due to problems in using electronic voting machines.

As the voting hours ended at 4:00pm, a good number of voters were seen in queues at different polling centres, reports received from different cenmtres said.

The returning officer said that the election was free, fair and peaceful.

A total of 2,29,920 voters are scheduled to exercise their voting right through electronic voting machines in all the 640 booths of the 105 centers as close circuit cameras have been installed inside the centres for the first time.

The city corporation election is regarded as the first test for the new Election Commission after it has already failed to make local AL lawmaker AKM Bahauddin leave Cumilla city as he was allegedly influencing the election in favour of the party’s mayor candidate.

It is the third election for the former mayor and independent candidate Monirul Haque Sakku for mayor, who was expelled from the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party for participating in the election against the party decision and the first election for AL candidate Arfanul Haque for the office.

Five candidates for mayor, 106 for councillors and 36 for reserved seats for women councillors are contesting in the city polls for which 2.29 lakh voters are listed to exercise their voting rights.

After casting his vote in the morning, AL candidate Arfanul Haque termed the election peaceful and said that he was hopeful about his win.

Former mayor and independent candidate Monirul Haque Sakku, after casting his vote, also expressed his hope to win in the election.

There are 27 wards and nine reserved seats for women in the city corporation.

It is the third election of the Cumilla City Corporation after its formation in 2011.

Law enforcement agencies have mounted tight security measures to ensure peaceful holding of much talked-about polls, said superintendent of Cumilla Police Faruk Ahmed on Tuesday.

The whole city has been brought under security blanket, he said while speaking at a press briefing on law and order situation ahead of the polls at Language Movement Hero Drirendanath Datta Stadium.

The law enforcement agencies have done whatever is needed to ensure security and at least 75 check-posts were installed in the city, he said.

Over 3,600 members of law enforcement agencies have already been deployed in the field to maintain law and order, he added.
The last Cumilla city election was held on Mar 30, 2017. BNP leader Monirul Haque Sakku was elected mayor for the second term.