& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Irregularities prompt EC to postpone Belkuchi UZ polls

Pro-AL candidate's men take control of polling centres

Our Correspondent, sirajganj
Election to Belkuchi Upazila Parishad in Sirajganj was postponed yesterday following allegations tliat supporters of pro-Awami League candidate Fazlul Haque have prevented voters from casting votes and taken control of polling centres.
But the postponement of the election at around 2:00pm prompted the supporters of pro-AL candidate to go berserk, damaging a microbus of foreign election observers. They also confined Belkuchi Upazila Nirbahi Officer and Assistant Returning Officer Nasir Uddin and some others officials in the rooms of upazila office for five hours.
Meanwhile, polling at Chowhali Degree College centre in Chowhali upazila was also postponed after a voter list containing 100 names went missing. However, the voter list was found an hour later.
A clash between supporters of proBNP candidate Selim Jahangir and Pro-Awami League candidate Amzad Hossain Milon took place at At Tarash upazila at around 2:30pm, leaving seven people
injured. The injured were admitted to Sirajganj Sadar Hospital and Rajshahi Medical College I lospitaL
Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) arrested two persons along with Tk 15,900 from Victoria School centre in Sirajganj town while they were distributing the money to the voters in a bid to buy votes. The arrestees are Raju Ahrned and Abdul Awal.
Besides, Ullapara police arrested three more persons, including a woman, from a polling centre, as they were trying to persuade voters to cast votes for a certain candidate.
Sources said the Election Commission postponed the election to Belkuchi upazila Parishad, as supporters of pro-AL candidate took control of about 21 centres. They prevented the supporters of pro-BNP and Jamaat candidate from casting votes.
They also assaulted six people, including a presiding officer and a sub inspector, during the voting.
Receiving complaints from the supporters ofpro-BNP-Jamaat candidate, the Election Commission asked the authori-
ties concerned to postpone the polling.
After the incident, agitating supporters of Upazila AL secretary Fazlul 1 laque, a chairman candidate, laid siege to the UNO office and damaged a miciobus of foreign observers.
At a press conference later, Belkuchi Upazila AL said the returning officer and assistant returning officer postponed the elections on the basis of false allegations made by BNP-Jamaat men.
They said that the poling in different centres was going on in a fair and peaceful manner.
When contacted, Deputy Commissioner Humayun Kabir and Police Super Alarngir Rahman told The Daily Star tliat the Election Commission has ordered them to postpone the elections following allegations of irregularities.
They also said that they were investigating the allegations.
However, polling in eight upazilas, out of nine, in the district was held amid huge enthusiasm and festivity..