Thakurgaon-1 by-poll underway across 185 centres

Voting in the Thakurgaon-1 by-election is underway from 8:00am to 4:00pm on Thursday across 185 polling centres, 113 in Thakurgaon Sadar, 33 in newly formed Ruhia and 39 in Bhulli upazila. 

The constituency has 516,140 voters, comprising 515,853 regular voters, 257,219 men, 258,630 women and four third-gender voters and 287 postal voters, including 249 men and 38 women.

Five candidates are in the race, with Mirza Faisal Amin, younger brother of President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, contesting with “sheaf of paddy” symbol and his rival Jamaat-e-Islami-backed candidate Delawar Hosen running with “scales” symbol.

The other candidates are: Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan's Md Abdul Alim Nizami; Islami Andolan Bangladesh's Hafez Md Khademul Islam; and Bangladesh Congress's Hussain Muhammad Omar Farooq. 

District Election and Returning Officer Md Kamrul Islam said polling was proceeding peacefully, with law enforcement agencies maintaining security at all centres, supported by reserve forces.

Greeting voters and voting at Thakurgaon Government Girls' High School around 8:00am, Faisal Amin predicted an 'absolute victory'.

Casting his vote at Hajipara Adarsha High School in Thakurgaon Municipality's Ward 5, Md Delwar Hossain expressed 100 per cent confidence in winning a fair poll and pledged to accept an impartial result. 

The seat fell vacant on August 21 after former Thakurgaon-1 MP Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir was elected president and took oath of office.

Sources: UNB