BNP picks Ariful to contest Sylhet mayoral polls

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has finally kept trust in its incumbent mayor Ariful Haque Chowdhury by nominating him as its mayoral candidate for Sylhet City Corporation polls billed for 30 July, reports UNB.

BNP senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi came up with the announcement at a press conference at the party's Naya Paltan central office on Wednesday.

He said their party's nomination board picked Ariful as the party's mayor runner in the Sylhet city polls.

The BNP leader said Ariful is also the candidate of the BNP-led 20-party alliance.

On Sunday, the party nominated incumbent mayor Moasaddek Hossain Bulbul as its mayoral candidate for Rajshahi while party leader Mujibur Rahman Sarwar for Barishal city polls, dropping current mayor Ahsan Habib Kamal.

The elections to Rajshahi, Sylhet and Barishal city corporations will be held on 30 July.

On 20 June, BNP's nomination board took interviews of 17 party nomination aspirants at party chairperson's Gulshan office to finalise the party's mayoral candidates to contest the elections to the three city corporations.

According to the election schedule announced by the election commission, the deadline for the submission of nomination papers is 28 June, while the dates for scrutinising those are 1 and 2 July, and the last date for withdrawal of candidature is 9 July.

BNP candidates Bulbul, and Ariful Haque and Ahsan Habib Kamal were elected mayors in Rajshahi, Sylhet and Barisal city polls respectively in 2013.

BNP insiders said the party dropped Barishal mayor Kamal this time as local leaders and activists are unhappy with him.