With vote counting in more than half of the polling centres completed in Gazipur City Corporation (GCC) election on Tuesday, Awami League-backed mayoral candidate Jahangir Alam has taken a clear lead.
According to unofficial results, Jahangir bagged 241,470 votes in 215 centres while Bangladesh Nationalist Party mayoral contestant Hasan Uddin Sarker polled 1,07,952 votes.
Earlier, voting in the GCC election was held amid BNP's various allegations of irregularities and vote fraud at many polling stations.
However, the ruling party and its mayoral candidate claimed that the balloting was largely fair and BNP brought the allegations to make the polls controversial.
The voting was suspended in seven polling centres, including Khartoil Mansur Ali Adarsha School, West Joydebpur Madinatul Ulum Madrassah, Bhogra Government Primary School and Daffodil Kindergarten-2, due to violence and capturing of polling stations and giving fake votes, said Dewan Mohammad Humayun Kabir, deputy commissioner of Gazipur.
The polling that began at 8:00am ended at 4:00pm without any break at 425 polling stations.
The turnout of voters was said to be around 50 per cent.
Earlier, in the day, BNP mayoral candidate Hasan Uddin Sarker demanded the Election Commission stop voting immediately. He came up with the demand at a press conference in Gazipur.
‘They (AL men) captured over 100 centres since the morning after driving out my polling agents and established full control over all the polling stations by 1pm,’ the BNP mayoral candidate said.
He said the ruling party men were stuffing ballots and casting fake votes in absence of his agents.
Later, he went to the returning officer with written allegations and demanded cancellation of the election.
Sarker cast his vote at BashiruddinUdayan Academy polling centre in Tongi in the morning.
Ruling party candidate Jahangir expressed his hope for the victory while casting his vote at Kanaia Government Primary School under ward No 30in the morning.
About BNP's allegation, he said, ‘It is BNP's old nature.’