Five people were injured in an attack at Faridpur-3 independent candidate AK Azad’s office, allegedly carried out by supporters of ruling party Awami League-backed candidate on Tuesday.
The attack was carried out in Ward 14 of the municipal area in Mahmoodpur, where Azad has a campaign office.
The injured include Joint Convener Abdul Rahman Jhanak of the election management committee of AK Azad. One of them is in critical condition and has been admitted to Faridpur Medical College Hospital.
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Eyewitnesses, including Ashraf Hossain and Paresh Chandra of AK Azad’s committee, said after the day's campaigning had ended, in the evening they were as usual discussing various issues in the office. While they were doing so about 150 to 200 men, led by Councillor Mobarak Khalifa and Atiar Sheikh, attacked the office, chanting slogans.
During this time, they vandalised various office equipment, they said.
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Asked to respond to these allegations, councillor Mobarak Khalifa said, "While our vehicle was passing in front of the election office, supporters of the independent candidate were throwing bricks and tiles at our vehicle, chanting slogans. Later, perhaps some bricks were thrown from behind as well. However, their allegations are not correct."
Kotwali Police Station Officer-in-Charge Shahidul Islam informed journalists that the police were immediately sent to the scene after receiving the news.
An investigation will be carried out in light of the allegations, he said.
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The two candidates have been going at it since submitting their nominations, with a battle to disqualify each other going all the way to the Supreme Court. Azad was known to covet the AL nomination, for which he had bought the form. But when the party chose Shamim, he jumped on the chance to run as an independent, backing himself to peel away a sizable chunk of the AL vote from the party's candidate with him, as he has been working with the aim of representing the constituency in parliament for over a year.