Voters arrive at centres at dawn, Fakhrul, Shafiqur, Porwar, Nahid cast ballot

There was a crowd of voters in front of the Sofipur Malek Chowdhury Memorial Girls’ High School polling centre in Kaliakair upazila of Gazipur.

Amid the crowd, young voter Rahathul Islam stood in line with a mix of excitement, curiosity and pride. He had the opportunity to vote for the first time in this national election.

Rahathul Islam, a young voter from the Andarmanik area of the upazila, said, “I had been waiting for this day since I became eligible to vote. This is my first time casting a ballot. Not only did I vote for a candidate, I also had the chance to express my opinion in the referendum. It feels like I am part of an important national decision.”

Rahathul arrived at the centre early in the morning with members of his family. As a new voter, the polling environment was a unique experience for him. The security checks before entering, verifying the voter list and receiving the ballot paper — everything was new, but enjoyable.

After voting, Rahathul said with a smile, “I voted for my preferred candidate. I feel good to have voted in a peaceful environment. More young people should come out to vote — after all, we have to shape our own future.”

Eight candidates, including BNP nominee Md Mujibur Rahman and Jamaat-e-Islami’s Shah Alam Bakshi, are contesting from the Gazipur-1 constituency.

No untoward incident has so far been reported from anywhere in the country as voting in the 13th parliamentary election is underway across the country today, Thursday.

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami ameer Shafiqur Rahman cast his vote at Monipur High School and College atin Dhaka.

Mia Golam Porwar, Secretary General of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, cast his vote at the West Shiromoni Government Primary School polling centre.

He embraced his mother after meeting her at the voting centre.

Nahid Islam, the 11-party alliance candidate and convener of the National Citizen Party (NCP), cast his vote in the Dhaka-11 constituency on Thursday (12 February).

He voted at the AKM Rahmat Ullah University College polling centre in the Beraid area at around 8:00 am. He had arrived at the Badda-based centre around 7:50 am.

Several candidates are contesting the Dhaka-11 (Badda–Bhatara–Rampura) seat in the 13th parliamentary election. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has nominated MA Quayum for the constituency, while Nahid Islam is contesting as the candidate of the 11-party alliance.

Voting in the 13th parliamentary election has commenced. Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, secretary general of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), cast his ballot at the Thakurgaon Government Girls’ High School polling centre. He is contesting from the Thakurgaon-1 constituency.

Mirza Fakhrul arrived at the school premises shortly after 7:30 am today, Thursday. He then entered the polling booth and cast his vote. Afterwards, he spoke to members of the media.

A mobile court has fined four people Tk 50,000 in Raiganj upazila of Sirajganj for violating the election code of conduct.

Following the incident, Abul Khayer Sheikh, presiding officer of a polling centre in the area, has been withdrawn from duty.

Gazipur-2 has the largest electorate in the 13th national parliamentary election, with a total of 804,333 registered voters. By contrast, Jhalakathi-1 has the smallest electorate, with 228,431 voters.

Voters began arriving at polling centres from early Thursday morning to cast their ballots in the 13th National Parliamentary Election and referendum. As the hours passed, the presence of voters outside the centres steadily increased.

A visit to several polling stations in Dhaka–11 constituency, comprising parts of Rampura, Badda, Bhatara, and Hatirjheel in the capital, showed similar scenes from dawn.

In this constituency, BNP candidate M A Quayum is contesting with the party’s electoral symbol, the paddy sheaf. Nahid Islam, convener of the National Citizen Party (NCP) and a candidate backed by the 11-party electoral alliance, is also in the race, contesting with the Shapla Koli (water lily bud) symbol. Fazlay Bari Masud is the candidate from Islami Andolan Bangladesh in the seat.

Voting in the 13th parliamentary election and referendum began at 7:30am.

Polling is being held in 299 constituencies today. Voting in Sherpur–3 has been suspended following the death of a candidate.

Correspondents of Prothom Alo reported that voters have been lining up at various centres since morning to cast their ballots. Members of the armed forces and other law enforcement agencies have been deployed to provide security at polling stations.

Voting will continue until 4:30 pm. However, voters who are in line at that time will still be allowed to cast their ballots.

More than 127.7 million voters are eligible to vote in the 13th parliamentary election held after the July mass uprising.

A total of 50 registered political parties are participating in the election. There are 2,028 candidates in total, including 273 independents.