Thakurgaon, Oct 29 (V7N)- Voting is underway in the by-election to the Thakurgaon-1 parliamentary constituency, with polling beginning simultaneously at 8:00am on Thursday and scheduled to continue uninterrupted until 4:00pm.
Balloting is taking place at 185 polling centres across Thakurgaon Sadar, Ruhia and Bhulli upazilas. Voters and election officials have expressed hope that the election will be conducted fairly and peacefully.
Extensive security measures have been introduced to maintain law and order and protect the integrity of the vote. CCTV cameras have been installed at polling centres, while around 5,500 members of the police, Ansar, SRB and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) have reportedly been deployed.
Law enforcement personnel at polling centres are equipped with body-worn cameras, and drones are being used for surveillance. SRB personnel are also scheduled to remain deployed in the area for two days following the election.
Five candidates are contesting the by-election: Mirza Faisal Amin of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Delwar Hossain of Jamaat-e-Islami, Abdul Alim Nizami of Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan, Khademul Islam of Islami Andolan Bangladesh, and Hussain Muhammad Omar Faruk of Bangladesh Congress.
The seat became vacant after former MP Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir assumed the office of President of Bangladesh.
Voting is scheduled to continue until 4:00pm, after which ballots will be counted in accordance with election procedures.
END/SMA/AJ
