Friday, April 26, 2024
Ruling Awami League candidate Selina Hayat Ivy has made history, clinching the mayoral post of Narayanganj City Corporation (NCC) for the third time.
She beat her biggest opponent, independent candidate Advocate Taimur Alam Khandaker, by a big margin in the city corporation polls on Sunday.
According to unofficial information, Ivy obtained 1,61,273 votes while Taimur bagged 92,171 votes in all 192 centres, thus Ivy triumphed over her opponent by 69,102 votes.
Earlier in the day, the voting began in 27 wards of Narayanganj city at 8:00am and continued without any interruption until 4:00pm.
For the first time, electronic voting machines (EVMs) were used at all the centres across the industrial city to serve the electorate of a little over half a million.
The EVMs offered a different experience to the voters, but there were reports of fingerprint mismatch and delays due to technical glitches.
Most people are satisfied with the use of EVMs. However, some of the older voters had more difficulty with the new system. Voters had turned up at polling centres in good numbers to cast ballots, said Returning Officer Mahfuza Akhter.
After visiting several polling stations and speaking to election officials, Mahfuza said, “We saw a good number of ballots cast in the first four hours. The voter turnout is also very good.”
Meanwhile, the district administration chief said around 40 per cent of votes were cast halfway through the voting.
“Around 35-40 per cent of the total number of votes have been cast in the first four hours,” Deputy Commissioner Mostain Billah told the media at noon.
In 2011, the voter turnout was 69 per cent in Narayanganj City Corporation election, up from 62.33 per cent in 2016.
Narayanganj residents voted to decide whether to re-elect Selina Hayat Ivy as mayor for a third term or replace her with BNP leader Taimur Alam Khandaker.
The BNP has boycotted the elections, but Taimur decided to continue his mayoral run as an independent candidate and was subsequently removed from a senior position in the party.
Ivy cast her vote at Ali Ahmed Chunka Girls’ High School polling centre in the Shishubagh area while Taimur cast his vote at Narayanganj Islamia Kamil Madrasa centre in the Masdair area in the morning.
50% voter turnout: EC
An estimated 50 per cent of votes were cast in the Narayanganj City Corporation (NCC), Election Commission Secretary Md Humayun Kabir Khandaker said.
There have been no reports of any violations, so far, the EC secretary added.
Voters face trouble with EVMs
Voters in several polling stations said they faced trouble while casting their votes through the electronic voting machines (EVMs) on Sunday.
The slow voting due to confusion over using EVMs and technical glitches caused long queues at many polling centres.
A number of voters at the Deobhog Shishubagh Primary School centre complained of not being able to vote as the fingerprint scanners failed to identify them.
“I have been waiting since 9:00am and it’s 11:00am now, but could not cast my vote. The officials say my fingerprints are not matching,” said Aftab Mia.
“It was better before; just stamp the ballot and leave. It has been two hours,” he said.
