Comilla BNP not 'going to polls'

Comilla, Nov 25 (bdnews24.com) — The BNP's Comilla leaders has announced that they are not taking part in the Jan 5 city corporation elections protesting the decision to deploy no army and use EVMs in the ballot. Its president Rabeya Chowdhury made the boycott announcement on Friday evening at a press conference in the city's Town Hall. Comilla unit's general secretary and mayor aspirant Haji Aminur Rashid Yasin was also present at the briefing. But his party rival former Comilla municipality mayor Monirul Haque Sakku was not there. BNP participated in other local government elections earlier under the government, but it boycotted the Narayanganj City Corporation polls seven hours before the vote raising questions over EVMs and non-deployment of troops. But the party's local unit in Comilla has declared the decision one and a half months ahead of the polls as BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir had earlier hinted that the local leaders themselves would make the call. Yasin said, "We are still ready to join the elections if the Election Commission ensures no use of electronic voting machines and hand over the responsibility to maintain law and order to the army." Asked about Sakku's absence, he said, "Maybe he is campaigning to mobilise public support against EVMs." "People don't want EVMs. The Narayanganj polls have proved that the system is defective," he claimed. Along with Rabeya, also central vice-president, district vice-president Mahbubur Rahman, city unit president Farid Uddin, district Juba Dal president Amiruzzaman Amir, district Chhatra Dal president Utbadul Bari Abu and organising secretaries of all of these units were also present at the briefing. On Nov 22, while announcing the schedule for Comilla city polls, chief election commissioner A T M Shamsul Huda said the election would see 100 per cent use of EVMs. He also confirmed that no troops will be deployed. According to the schedule, nominations can be submitted until Dec 2 while the scrutiny for the mayoral posts would be held on Dec 4 and for the councillor posts on Dec 5. The nomination papers can be withdrawn up to Dec 14. The main opposition had expressed their reservations about the use of EVMs in the local government elections, but the BNP-backed aspirant was elected Chittagong mayor had in June last year where the machines were first trialled. The BNP had also protested when over 100,000 people of nine out of 27 wards cast their votes at 58 polling centres using the machines in the Oct 30Narayanganj election. The party on Tuesday had also sent a letter to the EC asking for army deployment and no use of EVMs in the Comilla polls. bdnews24.com/corr/dd/sh/trb/bd/2143h