Ministers and lawmakers of the ruling Awami League ensured their authority in upazila parishad defying party instructions as they helped their friends and family members win in many upazilas in the first three phases.
The month-long election is ending today with the fourth and final phase when voting will be held in 60 upazilas across the country.
Though there was a provision, the AL did not allocate its party symbol boat to any candidate in the elections boycotted by most opposition parties, including the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
AL leaders said that the party resorted to the strategy to avoid factional feuds and give the election a participatory and competitive look in the absence of rival parties.
However, the strategy backfired as ministers and local lawmakers threw their weights to ensure their preferred candidate, relatives and family members in many cases, won.
According to the Awami League central office, at least 300 candidates, who are either relatives or close aides of local lawmakers, were elected in the first three phases of the elections held in 382 upazila parishads.
Harun Majumder won the post of chairman in Fulgazi upazila of Feni by a huge margin, Shibli Nomani in Kaliganj of Jhenaidah; and SM Anwar Hossain in Sandwip of Chattogram won the post of upazila chairman. All of them are known as close aides of local lawmakers.
Atahar Ishrak Shabab Chowdhury, son of Noakhali-4 AL lawmaker Ekramul Karim Chowdhury, has won the post of chairman of Subarnachar upazila.
Bogura-1 constituency AL lawmaker Shahdara Mannan鈥檚 son Sakhawat Hossain Sajal won in the Sariakandi upazila, and her brother Minhaduzzaman Liton won in the Sonatala upazila.
SM Nur Alam Siddiqui, the younger brother of Pirojpur-1 AL lawmaker SM Rezaul Karim, contested for the post of chairman in the Nazirpur upazila parishad election and won by a margin of a few votes.聽
Khagrachari AL lawmaker Kujendra Lal Tripura鈥檚 son-in-law, Biswa Pradeep Karbari, has won the post of chairman of Ramgarh upazila.
Asibur Rahman Khan, son of Madaripur-2 constituency AL lawmaker Shahjahan Khan, has won Madaripur Sadar upazila.
Ataur Rahman Ata won the post of chairman in the Kushtia Sadar upazila election. He is the cousin of Awami League joint general secretary and Kushtia-3 lawmaker Mahbubul Alam Hanif.
However, at least 18 relatives of local lawmakers were defeated following a strong position taken by local units of the party, AL leaders said.
One of them is Shahadat Hossain, a chairman candidate in Companiganj upazila of Noakhali and the younger brother of Awami League general secretary Obaidul Quader.
He was defeated in the polls as he did not get support from the local unit of the Awami League.
According to Awami League leaders, lawmakers are using upazila elections to consolidate their power.
They said that the lawmakers were not giving concessions in the upazila elections so that they would not have to face tough competition in the next parliamentary elections.
Some lawmakers also nominated family members in the upazila elections to create a legacy in parliamentary politics, they said, adding that due to this, many party loyalists and senior politicians had been deprived.
AL presidium member AHM Khairuzzaman Liton told 抖阴精品 that this was embarrassing for the party and the government.
鈥楾he issues are definitely embarrassing for the party because the party president and general secretary clearly said that family members of lawmakers should not contest the upazila parishad elections and should not influence the polls,鈥� he said.
He said that lawmakers have given candidates in many upazila parishad elections, and their candidates also won due to their influence.
鈥業t is not supportable. This is against party discipline. For this, responsible persons should be identified and organisational measures should be taken,鈥� he said.
The country鈥檚 60 upazilas will go for elections today in the final phase amid fears of violence, intimidation, and low voter turnout.
In the first three elections, held on May 8, May 21, and May 29, less than 40 per cent of votes were cast.
According to the Election Commission, a total of 251 chairman candidates, 265 vice-chairman candidates, and 205 vice-chairman candidates for reserved women seats are seeking public mandate final phase polls when around 1.43 crore voters are called to cast their votes.
Taxi cabs, pickups, microbuses, and trucks will be banned from midnight on June 4 to midnight on June 5, during the final phase.
The EC has also banned the movement of motorcycles for three days in the upazilas where voting will be held today.