& 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

Little effort to better turnout

Finds Star's monitoring in capital

Star Report
Voter turnout in the capital was very low even though polling went on without any incidents of violence.
The Daily Star had deployed 14 reporters at seven polling centres in the capital to record each and every incident related to voting. There were incidents of fake votes being cast in two of the centres.
The usual election day festive mood, in which voters are seen queuing up well before the booths open, was absolutely missing yesterday.
The average vote cast in the seven centres was about 18 percent. There were no queues whatsoever during the entire day; and presiding and polling officers and polling agents spent the day largely sitting there with very little to do.
They said the poor voter turnout was due to the election not being an all-inclusive one. Although there was no violence throughout the day, a sense of insecurity was in the air since violence centring on the polls had rocked the country just a day before, they added.
Many voters, especially first timers, could not cast their votes as they did not find their names on the voters' list.
Some centres looked deserted as only a few voters turned up in the first couple of hours. The number of voters slightly increased around noon. At the polling centre at Uttara Girls School and College in Dhaka-18 constituency, voting started at 8:20am. Out of 2,996 voters, only 373 cast their voters, which is 12.45 percent.
No polling agent of Awami League nominee Shahara Khatun's opponent was seen in any of the seven polling booths of the centre and during the final hour of voting a number ofAwami League supporters managed to cast votes more than once. There were under-aged youths casting false votes as well.
At Matuail Adarsha Uchcha Biddalaya polling centre of Dhaka-5 constituency, 711 votes, out of a total of 4,298, were cast between 8:00am and 2:00pm.
The number jumped to 1,807 after 4:00pm thanks to rigging by polling agents of Awami League candidate Habibur Rahman Mollah.
At Natun Jurain KM Mainuddin Unchchya Bidlya polling centre of Dhaka-4 constituency, none turned up to cast votes in the first half hour of voting.
There were hardly any voters until 11:00am, when a small trickle of voters was seen.
However, many could not vote as they were not on the voter list of that centre. Out of the 1,077 voters who went in, around 300 returned without casting theirvotes.
Of the 8,154 voters of the centre, only 798 cast theirvotes, a miserable 9.78 percent.
Only 9.28 percent votes were cast at Sher-e-Bangla Govt Primary School of Dhaka-15 constituency. Most first-time voters went back without casting theirvotes as they were not on the voter list.
They complained that the candidates did not notify them of their serial numbers on the voter list, unlike what they had done ahead of previous elections.
Out of6,422 votes, 596 votes were cast.
At the Gandaria High School women's polling centre, only 14 percent votes were cast. Anwarur Rashid, presiding officer of the centre, said 546
voters, out of2,930, turned up to vote.
At Shahjahadpur Najar Mahmud Alim Madrasa centre of Dhaka-17 constituency, some local Awami League leaders and activists were seen working for the newly formed BNF party's candidate, allegedly after being instructed to do so by the Awami League high command on Saturday night.
The ruling Awami League did not nominate any candidate in the constituency as it had left it for Jatiya Party chief HM Ershad, who later withdrew.
Local Awami League leaders and activists expressed their frustration before The Daily Star reporters at the seat being left without a candidate and the fact that they were now working for a person largely unknown to people.
Only 477 voters (8.27 percent) exercised their right, out of5,767votersatthe centre.
However, the atmosphere at Shahid Community Centre polling at Lalbagh of Dhaka-7 constituency was livelier.
Although there were no queues, voters continued to come and cast their votes. Out of 3,855 votes, 1,177 votes were cast, over 30 percent.
The reason behind the better turnout was two ruling Awami League leaders were battling each other. Mostafa Jalal Mohiuddin contested as an Awami League nominee while former Awami League lawmaker of the constituency Haji Selim was an independent candidate.
The Bangla daily Prothom Alo also stationed its reporters at 19 polling centres in the capital. It reported that out of the 47,729 voters there, only 12,196 cast their votes. It also reported that there were irregularities and incidents of vote rigging in four polling centres.
The Daily Star had sent two reporters to Dhaka-1 constituency just outside the capital.
From Katakhali Primary School polling centre in Dohar, they reported that for over two hours in the morning some polling agents of Awami League
candidate Abdul Mannan Khan forced voters to cast their ballots in front of them to make sure the votes were cast for Mannan.
The reporters witnessed poor turnout in several other centres in Dohar-Nawabganj as well.
The low turnout was outside the capital too as voters preferred to stay home fearing violence. The Daily Star had 50 correspondents covering around 300 election centres across the country.
Polling officials at many polling centres were sitting idle with almost no voters showing up. At least 41 polling centres recorded zero voters, according to reports from our district correspondents.
Voting in most of the polling centres in Feni-3 was very low.
Only two people cast theirvotes in Char Chandia Hossainia Government Primary School centre. The centre located in Sonagazi upazila has 2,432 constituents. In the same upazila, only one cast his vote in Sawdagar Hat Mahmudia Madrasa centre, which had 2,379 voters.
In Gunak Government Primary School Centre in Bagdna Union of the upazila, only 11 out of 1,726 voters turned up, said presiding officer Abu Tayeb.
In Shialdanga Govt Primary School centre in Satkhira Sadar, only one person cast his ballot. Only 162 out of 2,874 voters cast their vote in Raichpur Govt Primary School centre.
In Kushtia-3, only 623 out of2,356 votere turned up atShimulia Primary School centre until 3:40pm. Other centres in the constituency projected a similar picture.
At Paikarihati Shahidnagar centre in Santhia upazila of Pabna-1, only239 out of 1,957 votes were cast, said Shakhawat Hossain, presiding officer of the centre.
In Boroil Government Primary School centre of Dinajpur-3 constituency, a total of855 voters out of 2,289 cast their votes. In KBM College centre, only 455 voters cast their ballots, out of2,336 votes, said their presiding officers.