Bangladesh ruling party Awami League leader and chairman of Fulgazi sub-district union council in Feni district, Ekramul Haque Ekram, was shot and burnt to death by more than a dozen unidentified armed men in the Academy Area of the district town yesterday, a report reaching Dhaka said.
Police said Ekram came under attack from the desperados, numbering 20, on his way to the sub-district headquarters in his car from his Masterpara residence
around 11am.
Mohibubullah Farhad, executive editor of the vernacular daily ‘Feni Protidin’ owned by Ekram, former Fulgazi union council chairman Sambu and another person, Hossain Ali, were also in the car at the time of attack.
The desperados swooped on the vehicle near Bilashi Movie House in the area and fired several bullets at the vehicles, leaving Ekram critically injured.
The attackers then vandalised the car and later torched it.
All the car passengers except Ekram, who sustained injuries with bullets, managed to come out.
Later, police recovered the chairman’s charred body and sent it to Sadar Hospital morgue for autopsy.
The attackers also beat up the chairman’s associates, leaving them injured.
Ekram had been accused of rigging election during the fourth phase of Union Council voting.
In the union council polls held on March 24, Ekram was elected chairman of Fulgazi sub-district union council against the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) supported candidate Mahatab Uddin Chowdhury Minar with huge margins.
Sub-district Awami League president and incumbent chairman Ekram was elected in the sub-district for the second time.
The BNP had brought allegations against Awami League activists for capturing polling centres, stuffing ballot boxes and casting fake votes.
According to the election commission, Ekram bagged 33,387 votes against his nearest contender BNP supported candidate Mahatab Uddin Chowdhury Minar who got only 9,511 votes.
Fulgazi is an electoral constituency of BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia.
Meanwhile, marred by extensive rigging, the final phase of sub-district union council election in Bangladesh saw the ruling Awami League maintaining its lead as candidates it endorsed won seven out of 12 chairman posts at stake.
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) -supported aspirants managed to win in only five sub-districts.
Chief election commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad said polling had been peaceful leaving aside some stray incidents.
With the latest phase, polling has been completed in 473 sub-districts out of 487.
The Awami League-backed candidates have so far won 241 chairman posts while the BNP-backed aspirants have taken 166.
The BNP’s ally Jamaat-e-Islami has 35 chairmen, Chittagong Hill Tracts-based PCJSS and UPDF eight and four, respectively, LDP one, and independent candidates won the rest - 12.
Observers said violence and rigging by party cadres shot up after the second phase of the sub-district polls when BNP and Jamaat candidates virtually humbled the ruling Awami League candidates.
