50pc voter turnout in Narayanganj city polls, says EC

Some 50 per cent of voters cast ballots in the Narayanganj City Corporation election that was held peacefully on Sunday, said Secretary of the Election Commission (EC) Md Humayun Kabir Khandaker.

The Tangail-7 by-polls and five municipalities' elections were held peacefully on the day, he said at a post-election conference at the EC Secretariat here on Sunday evening, reports UNB.

"According to initial assumptions, the voter turnout was some 50 per cent in Narayanganj City Corporation election. Besides, the voter turnout was some 31 per cent in Tangail-7 by-polls and some 60 per cent in five municipalities," said the EC secretary.

Noting that there was a massive turnout of voters in all election areas, the EC official said the EC monitored all the elections through its control room.

"So far none has lodged any complaint and no untoward incident has been reported there. The Tangail-7 by-polls as well as Narayanganj City Corporation and five municipalities' elections held peacefully," he said.

About the slow vote-casting through Electronic Voting Machine (EVMs), he said the EC earlier arranged mock voting through EVMs in Narayanganj. But the response of voters was low to the mock voting.

Since it needed to explain the system before the voters while they were in queues, it might take time, said Humayun.

When his attention was drawn to the remark of Election Commissioner Mahbub Talukder that the EC was not informed about those arrested during the Narayanganj election, the EC official said, "It is Talukder Sir who can say better about it actually. But the returning officer addressed all the complaints she received."