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| Bangladesh |
| Awami League men rig votes under police protection |
| 2015-04-29 |
| [Dhaka Tribune] Like many polling centres of the capital, the Dhaka Tribune found that votes were being rigged at Shukrabad's New Model College and New Model Bahumukhi High School, while it was also observed that it was the police and not the polling officials who were managing the voting booths at Lake Circus Girls High School centre. The casting of votes was suspended at several booths on the second floor of the New Model College centre in the afternoon, where Awami League supporters soon swooped in to stamp seals on the ilish symbol that represented AL-backed DSCC candidate Sayeed Khokon. As they were busy, a number of police and Ansar personnel lined up in front of those booths, trying to obscure the illegal deed from the view of other voters and media workers; no polling agent of the BNP-backed candidate was present. At the time, a Dhaka Tribune news hound found the centre's Presiding Officer Zafor Miah busy meeting some Awami League leaders in his room. At the New Model Bahumukhi High School centre, the news hound entered a first floor room to find a woman polling agent of Khokon stamping the seal on ilish symbol. In the Lake Circus Girls High School centre, police members were found managing the booths, while Ansar members assigned to guard the rooms were found sitting idly. When asked about this, Presiding Officer Kamruzzaman immediately asked the coppers not to enter the booths as journalists were present there. |
| Posted by:Fred |