Awami League-backed mayoral candidate AHM Khairuzzaman Liton (boat) has been elected mayor of Rajshahi City Corporation (RCC) for third time by defeating his closest rival Murshid Alam (mayoral candidate of Islami Andolon Bangladesh).
In a resounding display of support, AHM Khairuzzaman Liton has been re-elected as the mayor of Rajshahi City Corporation (RCC) for the third consecutive term. Liton won an outstanding victory by defeating Murshid Alam of Islami Andolon Bangladesh by a significant margin of 1,46,807 votes. This extraordinary election result demonstrates Liton’s enduring popularity and the Rajshahi voters’ confidence in his leadership.
Liton wins with 1,60,290 votes
The results from all 155 polling centers in Rajshahi city polls were announced by the Election Returning Officer, Md Delwar Hossain at the district’s Shilpakala Academy auditorium on Wednesday afternoon.
According to the results, Liton secured 1,60,290 votes while Islami Andolan Bangladesh’s Murshid Alam got 13,483 votes. Jaker Party’s Latif has received 11,713 votes and Jatiya Party’s Saiful got 10,272 votes.
This substantial victory demonstrates Liton’s popularity and faith among the voters of Rajshahi. Liton’s re-election as the mayor of Rajshahi City Corporation for the third time reflects the strong support he enjoys among the electorate. With a significant victory margin and a record of continuous success, he has established himself as a prominent figure in the city’s politics.
The mayoral candidates were the Awami League-nominated candidate, former mayor AHM Khairuzzaman Liton (boat), Jatiya Party’s Saiful Islam Swapan (plough), Islami Andolan Bangladesh’s Murshid Alam (handfan) and Jaker Party’s Latif Anwar (rose). However, Murshid had boycotted the election on 12 June in line with the party’s decision.
A total of 161 candidates were in the RCC election race. Apart from the mayoral candidates, there were 112 for general councilors in 30 wards and 46 for 10 reserved seats for women councilors.
Voter turnout
There were a total of 352,157 voters, including 30,157 new voters. Among the voters, 171,185 were men and 180,972 were women. The voter turnout stood at 56.20%.
Voting took place in 1,153 booths across 155 centers in 30 wards using electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Although, voting in the Rajshahi City Corporation polls began with a festive atmosphere, but heavy rainfall in the morning could be a reason of relatively lower turnout than previous years.
In the RCC polls, 76.28% of votes were cast in 2018, while 74.85% were cast in 2013.
Voting held with proper security measures
The Election Commission had marked 148 polling centers as important (risky) and seven as highly important (high-risk) out of the 155 polling centers. Special measures had been taken to avoid any undesired incidents at these locations.
A total of 1,463 CCTV cameras were installed at 155 polling centers in Rajshahi, ahead of the election. There were CCTV cameras at each center and five-tier security measures were ensured.
Election commissioners Brig Gen (retd) Md Ahsan Habib Khan, Md Alamgir and Rashida Sultana were present in the Election Commission control room for the election.
Around 3,500 members of the police, 400 from the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), 200 from the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and 1,860 Ansar members have discharged election duties.
BGB had deployed 10 platoons of BGB to avert any untoward incident and maintain peace in the metropolis before the election day.
To conclude, with fair election, AHM Khairuzzaman Liton’s resounding re-election as mayor of Rajshahi City Corporation reflects the confidence that the voters have placed in Liton’s ability to lead Rajshahi towards progress and prosperity.
