A man has been detained in connection with an attack on Mostafizur Rahman Sumon, a crime reporter at online news portal Agami News, on the day of the Dhaka City Corporation elections on Saturday.
The turnout was less than 20 percent in 709 centres in the February 1 Dhaka city polls, shows Election Commission data on all the 2,468 centres released yesterday.
The elections failed badly due to EVMs (electronic voting machines), the paddy sheaf symbol was not even included in many of the machines, Ishraque Hossain alleges.
Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader has said the apathy of voters during the recently held Dhaka city elections is not good for democracy.
Whether voters needed help or not, polling agents of the ruling party insisted on being by their sides at all times -- even inside the sacred area of the polling booth where nobody save the EVM machine is supposed to be a witness.
For most it was the first EVM experience and for many the experience was not pleasant.
Yesterday’s Dhaka city polls may appear to many a re-run of the national election held on December 30, 2018, because of some aspects.
Unlike any polls in the past, eligible city dwellers yesterday were free to exercise their right to vote through machine, for the first time, at all centres across Dhaka.
The polling atmosphere was eerily festive. Almost too peaceful to be true. Election posters flooded every nook and cranny of the capital. Supporters of the candidates, mostly from the Awami League, were seen outside the polling centres. Law enforcers patrolled the streets while peace prevailed.
Today is the last day for submission of nomination papers for Dhaka North and South City Corporations elections.