Sylhet City Corporation Mayor and BNP central member Ariful Haque Chowdhury has announced his withdrawal from the race in the upcoming mayoral election.
He made the announcement in a rally at the Registry field in the city on Saturday afternoon. He also urged the city dwellers to boycott the polls.
He said there is no environment of election under this government, in particular, the city residents have no knowledge about Electronic Voting Machine (EVM), and it is an arrangement of vote rigging.
"At the suggestion of former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia, BNP Acting Chairman Tareque Rahman, my mother and respected Islamic scholars, I boycotted the election," he said.
The election in Sylhet City Corporation is, however, scheduled to be held on June 21.
Samir Mahmud/SU