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candidate campaigning this way made people take notice. “We don’t usually see women candidates walking around with a small group. It made us stop and listen,” he said.

At around 12:30pm, Asma held a small roadside rally at the Bahaddarhat junction to reach floating voters. Her campaign materials were modest: a hand mic, a poster bearing her name and symbol, and leaflets outlining her message.

Addressing the gathering, she spoke about issues affecting ordinary people, including access to health services, quality education and fair wages for workers.

“I don’t have the money or manpower to organise large rallies or processions,” Asma said. “But I believe real politics is about speaking to people directly.”

In Chattogram-10, there are 4,86,316 registered voters and 139 polling centres. Nine candidates are contesting the seat, including BNP’s Saeed Al Noman and Jamaat-e-Islami’s Shamsuzzaman Helaly.

Later in the afternoon, Asma and her team held a small street-corner meeting in Sholoshohor. Speaking to residents, she said she was seeking votes to fight fascism and work towards a fair and equal society.

Chattogram-10 comprises eight wards of the Chattogram City Corporation, covering parts of Double Mooring, Halishahar and Khulshi.

Asma said women candidates often face additional barriers in politics. “Women rarely get space in this system. The field is not equal. That is why I prefer to stay on the ground and talk to voters myself,” she said.

The constituency has previously been represented by the late BNP vice-chairman Abdullah Al Noman, who later served as a minister. It is home to industrial factories, key railway facilities and several elite residential neighbourhoods.

In this constituency, another woman candidate, Sabina Khatun of Insaniyat Biplob Bangladesh, is also contesting.