Over 100 aspirants in field for polls in nine Sylhet upazilas
Over a hundred aspirants from different parties are already in the field as preparation for contesting in elections in nine of the 12 upazilas under Sylhet district.
With more than one aspirant for each post of upazila chairman and vice-chairmen, Awami League (AL) and BNP have started informal campaign for the polls while JP and Jamaat leaders are also in the field.
Many leaders have started throwing iftar party as preparatory measures.
Aspirants think that if the elections are held on October 23, as announced by the chief election commissioner, there will not be much time for campaign after announcement of the schedule while the Election Commission will put strict conditions for campaign.
Encouraged by success in Sylhet City Corporation polls held on August 4, leaders and activists of AL are hopeful of winning in the upazila polls while BNP men feel things should not go unchallenged.
Of the 12 upazilas in Sylhet district, nine upazilas got their voter final list ready by August 20 election will be held there in late October, officials said.
The nine upazilas are -- Sylhet Sadar, Dakshin Surma, Companiganj, Fenchuganj, Zakiganj, Golapganj, Balaganj, Beanibazar and Zaintapur.
“We are getting ready for the elections in nine upazilas, scheduled for late October. It may be held in two phases,” Deputy election commissioner for Sylhet division, Khondaker Mizanur Rahman said.
The number of aspirants is high as elections will be held in three posts -- chairman and two vice-chairmen in each upazila.
In view of the drawback in the city corporation elections, most of the grassroots level leaders of BNP think it will be another blunder to boycott the upazila polls and so, many of them are getting ready for the polls, without waiting for party signals.
Jatiya Party has already sent three-men panels of candidates from each of the nine upazilas to the central committee for approval.
In Sylhet Sadar upazila, Sujat Ali Rafique and Moksud Ahmed of AL, union parishad chairmen Mazharul Islam Dalim and Shah Zamal Nurul Huda and former city unit secretary Abul Kaher Shamim of BNP are potential aspirants for the upazila election.
Humayun Kabir Chowdhury, Shahjahan Siraj and Iqbal Ahmed are on the panel list of Jatiya Party.
In Companiganj, former upazila chairman M Taiyaber Rahman, upazila AL chief Sajidul Haque, UP Chairman Aftab Ali, Ajmal Ali and Jahangir Alam are interested to contest with AL support while Ali Ahmed and Hanif Khondker of BNP and Mahbubul Alam and Amin Ali of JP are also aspirants for upazila chairmanship.
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