& 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

Narayanganj City Polls

AL high-ups ’split’ over backing Ivy, Osman

Hasan Jahid Tusher
The Awami League high command has decided not to support any of Shamim Osman and Selina Hayat Ivy in upcoming Narayanganj City Corporation mayoral race.
The ruling AL had to reach the decision as its leadership failed to convince any one of the two to refrain from running for city mayor and was divided over who should get the party backing in the polls, said sources in its high-ups.
AL insiders said Prime Minister
and party chief Sheikh Hasina and a few other leaders have a “soft spot” for Shamim, a former AL lawmaker in Narayanganj, who now holds no portfolio in the party.
On the other hand, AL General Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam, presidium members Matia Chowdhury and Obaidul Quader, and Advisory Council Member HT Imam recommend to Hasina for Ivy, former mayor of now-defunct Narayanganj municipality and also a vice president of the party's town unit.
AL senior leaders observe if any
none of the duo withdraw candidacy by October 12, last date to do so, the party supporters, activists and leaders in Narayanganj will be divided in the NCC polls. This also might split the votes of the pro-AL supporters.
If the issue is not solved, Taimur Alam Khandoker, the only candidate to get the main opposition BNP backing, might be at an advantage, they added.
Hasina showed her fondness for Shamim, considering his support to the party when AL was in opposition
party supporters, activists and leaders in Narayanganj will clearly be divided at the NCC polls. This might also lead to a split among pro-AL voters.
If the issue is not resolved, Taimur Alam Khandoker, the only candidate to get the backing of the opposition BNP, might find himself at an advantage, they added.
Hasina reportedly leans toward Shamim, considering his support to the party when it was in opposition in 2001-2006. Moreover, all AL units in Narayanganj happen to be behind him, as the sources point out.
However, the AL chief is also aware that Ivy has carved out a huge popularity base in Narayanganj for herself through her performance as mayor in 2003-2011.
The sources said the Awami League president even offered Ivy a party nomination for the next parliamentary polls if she withdrew from the NCC polls.
As Shamim and Ivy adopted clearly rigid positions over contesting the polls when they met Sheikh Hasina separately, the AL chief assigned Obaidul Quader, Joint General Secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif and lawmaker Abdur Rahman to try to break the stalemate.
The leaders urged both
Shamim and Ivy to reach a compromise by Wednesday. After neither of them indicated a change in position, Hasina decided not to throw her weight behind either of the candidates. But she does mean to cheer whoever wins the race.
"The party has decided to keep the ground open for Shamim Osman and Ivy. We will welcome it if any of them comes out victorious in the election," a senior AL leader told The Daily Star yesterday, preferring not to be named as the party has decided not to reveal its views on the matter to the media.
Asked, Mahbubul Alam Hanif, also a special assistant to the prime minister, said, “We still want a single candidate to contest the election with our backing since it will be tough to win the polls if there are two candidates."
Contacted, Obaidul Quader said both Shamim and Ivy were popular in Narayanganj.
Declining to comment on the party stance over the deadlock created by the two, he, however, said the government was committed to holding a free and fair elec-tion like the one in Chittagong City Corporation, among many others.
Meanwhile, the returning officer in the city yesterday published a list of prospective candidates — eight for mayor, 247 councillor and 56
for the posts of reserved woman councillors, reports our Narayanganj correspondent.
The officer cancelled the candidacy applications of 31 councillors owing to their defaulting on loans, among other factors, and asked them to appeal to the divisional election officer within three days.