Race for Thakurgaon-1 begins as BNP, Jamaat hit campaign trail

Candidates of BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami began campaigning for the Thakurgaon-1 by-election today shortly after the Election Commission (EC) allocated electoral symbols to them.

BNP candidate Mirza Faisal Amin, younger brother of President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, campaigned with the “sheaf of paddy” symbol, while Jamaat candidate Delawar Hossain sought votes with the “scales” symbol.

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The symbols were allocated around 11:00am, following which the two candidates separately took to the campaign trail, distributing leaflets and seeking votes from people from different sections of society in various parts of Thakurgaon town.

The other three candidates -- Khademul Islam of Islami Andolan Bangladesh, Abdul Alim Nizami of Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan and Hossain Muhammad Omar Faruk of Bangladesh Congress -- have yet to begin their campaigns.

Supporters of Mirza Faisal had started putting up banners, festoons and billboards on major roads in the town late Wednesday night, ahead of the formal allocation of symbols.

At around 2:00pm, loudspeaker campaign in support of the “sheaf of paddy” began across the town.

Around 2:45pm, Mirza Faisal, accompanied by party leaders and activists, began his campaign by distributing leaflets and seeking votes at Chowrasta, the town's main intersection.

“President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir is the guardian of Thakurgaon. The seat fell vacant after he became president. The party nominated me to continue the development activities he had initiated in the area,” he said.

District BNP General Secretary Poygam Ali, Joint General Secretary and Thakurgaon municipality BNP President Shariful Islam, Sadar upazila BNP General Secretary Mahbub Hossain and other party leaders and activists accompanied him.

Meanwhile, Jamaat candidate Delawar formally began his campaign around 4:45pm by distributing leaflets and seeking votes in the Old Bus Stand area.

Earlier in the afternoon, his supporters brought out an election procession in the town.

“The local government election will be held after this election. It will show whether that election will be free and fair,” Delawar said.

He also pledged to work towards building a Thakurgaon free from terrorism and corruption and to ensure proper distribution of government allocations for the development of the area.

Jamaat Central Assistant Secretary General Advocate Ehsanul Mahbub Zubair was present during the campaign.

The election to the constituency will be held on October 29, with voting scheduled from 8:00am to 4:00pm. Campaigning will continue until 8:00am on October 27.

Returning Officer and District Election Officer Quamrul Islam said candidates could now campaign in accordance with the electoral code of conduct.

The constituency has 516,138 voters.