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Voting Information

Most voters in the dark

Wasim Bin Habib
Many voters in Dhaka city did not know where to go to vote and, in some cases, who the candidates were even a day before the one-sided elections, as the contestants in many constituencies have failed to reach out to their voters.
Ahead of the hotly contested elections in the past, candidates went from door to door asking for votes and giving the constituents voter slips with voters' serial numbers and the names of polling centres. The voters used to get the slips several times.
This time, however, things are quite different. Many voters said they did not get any voter slip. The candidates have failed to engage in hectic electioneering the city dwellers have been witnessing for decades.
"No one has come to us with any slip. We don't feel as interested to cast our ballots because we don't know where our polling station is," said Wares Rahman, a resident of Eastern Housing in Duaripara, which belongs to Dhaka-16.
Many other people, especially slum dwellers, of the area said they did not know the location of the polling station.
In the 2008 elections, Wares had cast his vote at a centre in Roopnagar area in Mirpur. But he shifted to Duaripara a few months ago. "The last time, candidates came to us and asked for votes,' he toldThe Daily Star yesterday.
Jasmine Akhter, a resident of Monipur in Mirpur, said," I still belong to the same constituency where I cast my vote previously. Therefore, I guess I have to go to the same pollingcentre."
Her constituency is Dhaka-15, where Awami League nominated Kamal Ahmed Majumder is challenging Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal nominated Saiful Islam and independent candidate Ekhlas Mollah.
Uttara resident Aklima does not know who the candidates in her constituency are. " No one has shown up this time. Could you tell me where to go and who are running forelection?" she said.
Of the 15 constituencies in Dhaka city, seven have had their candidates elected uncontested, depriving almost half the electorate from their
right to elect their representatives.
Three of the other eight constituencies might see fierce competition thanks largely to rebel candidates of the ruling AL who are competing against the party nominees.
Many voters said they did not know if their constituencies would go to the polls since they did not know which constituencies have already had their representatives elected unopposed.
Mahfuzur Rahman, a resident of Shahjahanpur, called The Daily Star only to discover that his constituency was not going to the polls. "The reason I did not know this is simple: there is no election atmosphere this time."
However, keenly contested elections are expected in a few constituencies, a good example of which is Dhaka-7.
AL's rebel candidate Haji Selim is vying independently with AL-nominated Mostofa Jalal Mohiuddin, an incumbent lawmaker in the constituency consisting of Lalbagh, Chowkbazar, Kotwali and Bangshal areas.
The voters of this constituency have received the "slips". One of them, Rezaul Islam, said, "We have got voter slips from the campaigners several times as of today. It seems there will be a tough contest here."