Constituency demarcation: Protesters besiege Bagerhat election office for 3rd straight day
Though they will not announce any hartal or blockade programmes until the Durga Puja festival, they will observe sit-in until their demands are met
Leaders and activists besieged the Bagerhat election office for the third consecutive day today (18 September), demanding that all four parliamentary seats in the district be retained.
Protesters under the banner of the Sorbodolio Sommilito Committee (All-Party Joint Committee) pitched tents and held a sit-in outside the district election office from morning, with small processions arriving from surrounding areas.
They said no hartal or blockade would be announced before the Durga Puja festival, but the sit-in will continue until their demand is met, reports UNB.
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MA Salam, co-convener of the committee and former Bagerhat district BNP president, said the protest and sit-in have continued for the third day.
"We have submitted a petition to the High Court and it has initially issued a 10-day rule. We will continue our movement until our demand is met. If necessary, we are ready to escalate with non-cooperation programmes," he added.
The High Court (HC) issued a rule asking why directives should not be given to retain four constituencies in Bagerhat and why the Election Commission's (EC) decision to cut the seats to three should not be declared illegal. The EC and other relevant authorities have been asked to respond within 10 days, the protesters said.
On 30 July, the EC proposed reducing Bagerhat's four constituencies to three ahead of the 13th parliamentary election. Locals immediately launched protests and later joined EC hearings demanding that all four seats remain.
On 4 September, the EC finalised the gazette keeping only three seats, sparking further outrage. All-Party Joint Committee leaders said the commission ignored public demand and their calls to change the boundary.
According to the gazette, the new constituencies are Bagerhat-1 (Bagerhat Sadar–Chitalmari–Mollahat), Bagerhat-2 (Fakirhat–Rampal–Mongla), and Bagerhat-3 (Kachua–Morrelganj–Sarankhola).
