Dhaka city polls: Voting ends with low turnout

Voting in the Dhaka North and South City Corporations has ended at 4pm Saturday starting from 8am.

Voter turnout was lower than expected in the polls.

Here are the latest updates on the polls-

4:05pm: Voting ends.

04:00pm: Councilor candidate Kamruzzaman Kajal got injured during a clash with Awami League-backed candidate Abul Bashar's supporters in Viqarunnisa School and College centre.

Bashar's supporters were allegedly voting on their own favour using EVM. The clash began as supporters of Kamruzzaman tried to take the EVM from them. 

03:25pm: Awami League Leader Moazzem allegedly driven out Samakal journalist Anowar Ibrahim from Viqarunnisa School and College centre. 

03:20pm: Awami League-backed Dhaka South City Corporation mayoral candidate Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh has expressed frustration over the low voter turnout in the ongoing Dhaka South City Corporation.

"We expected at least 60 percent votes would be cast. But we saw much low turnout of the voters, which is frustrating," Taposh said while briefing media today at Green Road in the capital.

01:50pm: Benazir Ahmed, director general of Rapid Action Battalion, visits polling centres at Viqarunnisa Noon School & College.  

01:30pm: Jatiya Oikya Front Convener Dr Kamal Hossain on Saturday said voters are not coming to polling stations as they have no confidence in the election system.

12:45pm: Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), KM Nurul Huda today said the commission has not received any direct complaint about BNP's polling agents are being driven out from some polling centres. 

12:28pm: A total of 1,358 votes were cast in two centres of Diabari Adarsha High School polling centre. Votings are ongoing amid festivity and the voter turnout is impressive. 

11:37am: Saarc Human Rights Foundation Secretary General Mowlana Mohammad Abed Ali visited Viqarunnesa Noon School and College polling centre. Abed, also the executive director of Election Monitoring Forum, said 25 percent of votes have been cast in the first three hours. 

---

Also Read

PM blasts foreign missions for making locals 'foreign election observers'
No complaints yet: CEC
Foreign missions drop local staff from election observer teams
Voter turnout low in first 3 hours of Dhaka city polls
Dhaka City Polls: It's a beautiful day, says US envoy

---

11:27am: US Ambassador to Bangladesh Earl R Miller visited Rampura Ekramunnesa High School and Tejgaon's Shaheed Monu Miah Govt High School polling centres this morning. He observed the polls briefly but did not interact with the media. Earl Miller looked at the sky and said "its a beautiful day" before he left the Tejgaon polling centre.  

11:23am: The Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda cast his vote at IES School and College polling centre in Uttara. After casting his vote, the CEC said he is satisfied with the overall situation and voter turnout. 

11:03am: Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal cast his vote. He said BNP's is bringing baseless allegation by saying their polling agents are not present in the booths. 

10:27am: Dr Kamal Hossain cast his vote at Viqarunnesa Noon School and College polling centre. He said it took him half an hour to cast his vote because his fingerprint could not be matched in the EVM. 

10:20am: Attackers threw out BNP polling agents from Goran Primary School polling centre.  

10:15am: BNP backed councillor aspirant Faruk Hossain's agents were allegedly attacked by supporters of Awami League endorsed councillor aspirant Shahidullah Minu in Gendaria. In addition, Minu's men also chased the supporters of Mortuza Jamal out of the area. 

10:11am: Eight BNP polling agents were thrown out of the University Laboratory School and College polling centre in Dhaka University area, reports bangla daily Prothom Alo. 

10:08am: Votings in five booths out of eight remained suspended for one hour as the EVMs broke down soon after polling began at Badsha Faisal Institute School and College in Shyamoli Ring road area.

READ MORE: Dhaka city polls begin

10:00am: Voting remained suspended for 20 minutes as a EVM broke down at a booth in Begum Badrunnesa Govt College polling centre. A voter Ashfaq Hossain said he has been waiting for over 40 minutes but could not cast his vote as the machine is not working. The total number of voters in the booth is 2,469. Of them, 100 votes have been cast so far. 

9:53am: Two BNP councillor candidates of Dhaka South City Corporation were allegedly attacked by their rivals. Miscreants swooped on Sirajul Islam, a candidate of ward 16, while he was entering Kathalbagan Khan Hasan School polling centre, while Jahangir Patwary, a candidate of ward 18, was attacked on his way to Government Laboratory School. 

9:18am: Only one vote cast out of 377 in the first one hour of the polls at a booth in Viqarunnesa College polling centre. 

8:38am: Many booths at Viqarunnesa College polling centre were not functioning properly. A voter Moniruzzaman Manik started his vote through EVM at 8.05am and finished at 8.29am. 

8:30am: Awami League-backed Dhaka South City Corporation mayoral candidate Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh cast his vote in Dhanmondi. 

ALSO READ: A big test for machines 

8:17am: BNP mayoral candidate for Dhaka South City Corporation Ishraque Hossain casted his vote Shajahan Govt Primary School in Gopibagh. He said the EVM process can manipulate polls. 

8:12am: Incumbent mayor of Dhaka North City Corporation Atiqul Islam was spotted in a festive mood at Nawab Habibullah Model School and College in Uttara of Dhaka, along with his family members.

Atiqul told reporters polls are taking place in a fair and festive manner. 

8:10am: BNP-backed Mayoral candidate Tabith Awwal voted at Manarat Dhaka International School in Gulshan.

Tabith said that athough the Election Commission was supposed to assign magistrates at every polling area, but he did not find any in the polling centre. 

Asked about the newly-introduced EVM machine, Tabith claimed that the machine broke down, which is yet to be fixed.

8:02am: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina cast her vote at Dhaka City Corporation polling centre.

8:00am: Voting begins at 2,468 polling centres in two city corporations.