Newly elected mayor of Narayanganj City Corporation (NCC) Dr Selina Hayat Ivy, 36 councillors, including nine councillors of reserved seats, were sworn in on Wednesday. The swearing-in ceremony was held at Osmani Memorial Auditorium. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina joined it from her official residence Ganobhaban. Hasina administered oath to mayor Dr Selina Hayat Ivy, while LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Md Tajul Islam administered oath to 27 councillors and nine councillors of reserved seats being present in-person at the ceremony. Awami League candidate Selina Hayat Ivy was elected mayor of Narayanganj City Corporation for the third consecutive term in an election held on January 16. She beat her nearest rival Taimur Alam Khondker by 66,535 votes. READ: NCC Polls: Ivy rewrites history with a hat-trick Ivy, who contested the election with the symbol of "Boat", secured 1,59,097 votes to win the election against independent candidate Taimur Alam, who bagged 92,166 votes with the symbol of "Elephant". READ: ‘Boat will surely win,’ says Ivy         

The Narayanganj City Corporation (NCC) election has been viewed as a fair one by the international community, said Local Government and Rural Development (LGRD) Minister Md Tajul Islam. The Minister said this to the reporters after a meeting with Indian High Commissioner Vikram Kumar Doraiswami on Tuesday. Read:NCC Polls: Ivy rewrites history with a hat-trick He said that Narayanganj city polls were witnessed by the entire nation, diplomats and the media. The diplomats had discussed among themselves that the election was free and fair. Though votes have been cast via Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) Awami League candidate won a huge number of votes.

Taimur Alam Khandaker, the defeated independent candidate in the Narayanganj City Corporation mayoral election, termed his defeat as the defeat of the government on Sunday. He made the remarks in a press briefing after his defeat was ascertained by the landslide victory of Awami League mayoral candidate Selina Hayat Ivy on Sunday evening. Taimur said, “The defeat was of the government, not ours.” He said it all started from arresting his chief coordinator at Siddhirganj police station and after that everyday his supporters had been arrested. Also read: NCC Polls: Ivy rewrites history with a hat-trick “While filing case against them they were identified as Hefazat-e-Islam members even though many of them were Hindu by religion,” he said. Taimur claimed from Sunday morning eight people were arrested who were in his support including his Bandar upazila coordinator. Besides, numerous raids were conducted including at his chief polling agent’s house, he said. “In these circumstances it’s hard for an independent candidate to survive anyway.” Taimur said in many centres Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) were defective and slow, due to which many voters couldn’t cast their vote and it only contributed more to his defeat. He said, “The game was government vs public and also government vs Taimur.” Ivy, the country’s first female city mayor, also became the first person ever to be elected thrice as mayor of any city in the country, as she secured a landslide victory by a margin of 69, 102 votes over Taimur. Also read: NCC polls: Voting underway amid tight security She bagged 1,61,273 votes while her nearest contestant Taimur Alam polled 92, 171. Returning officer Mahfuza Akter announced the results on Sunday evening, a few hours after voting ended. Voting had continued past 4pm due to the slow pace of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) and the presence of voters in some centres of Bandar upazila.

After an 18-day high voltage campaigning Narayanganj City Corporation is all set to go to polls on Sunday with focus on who will be the next mayor. The electioneering officially ended on Friday midnight. Although seven candidates are running for the post of the NCC mayor, ruling party nominee Selina Hayat Ivy and her principal rival – Advocate Taimur Alam Khandaker, a veteran BNP leader   fighting as an independent candidate – have stolen all the attention. Election watchers are expecting a tight contest between them. Supporters of both candidates have conducted hectic electioneering. Also read: NCC poll: Electioneering ends with exchange of blows, allegations Besides 148 candidates are contesting for 27 ward councilors post while 38 women are contesting for conserved seats for women in the NCC polls. This time the NCC elections have 517,357 voters – including 257,519 females. As the candidates are trying to woo voters with promises, all the voters want is the development of their city. The candidates' qualifications, popularity, party symbol, gender, age, electronic voting machines (EVMs), and turnout could be the deciding factors this year. Women and youth are expected to play a pivotal role. All the heavyweight mayoral candidates are making last-minute efforts to win their votes. However, there are some 42,418 first-time voters. Whoever wants to win the election must bag a major chunk of the first-timers, according to popular perceptions.

BNP on Monday pulled out Taimur Alam Khandaker from its chairperson’s advisory council as he is contesting the Narayanganj City Corporation (NCC) election as an independent mayoral candidate defying the party decision. Taimur was informed of the party’s action through a letter signed by party senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi in the afternoon without assigning any reason for removing him from the post. On December 26 last, Taimur was also relieved from the post of convener of Narayanganj district unit BNP. He is, however, still the party’s primary member. Contacted, Rizvi said Taimur’s name was withdrawn from the BNP chairperson’s advisory council as per the decision of party high command. Also read: Govt faces collapse under weight of ‘misdeeds’: BNP He declined to elaborate the reason behind the party’s punitive action. A senior BNP leader, wishing anonymity, said their party has a decision not to join any polls under the Awami League government. “That’s why our party has long been boycotting local body polls. But Taimur Alam Khandaker didn’t comply with the party's decision.” As Taimur has been there in the Narayanganj city polls race as an independent candidate, he said, their party has decided to withdraw him from an important post of party chairperson’s adviser. Sought his comment on the party’s action, Taimur said, “I have the respect for the decision of the party…I welcome it. I earlier quit the election race in 2011 as per the party’s directives. I heard that a move was there in favour of the ruling party candidate. I think the action was taken against me this time as well for the same reason.” Also read: Khulna’s Manju relieved from BNP position He said he is now a candidate of the people of Narayanganj city. "Now I’ve no guardian. I’m guardian of myself and my people. I’ll remain there in the election race till the end.” Taimur was made a member of the BNP chairperson’s advisory council after the party’s sixth national council held in March, 2016. The Narayanganj City Corporation polls are scheduled to be held on January 16. Taimur is vying for the post of the mayor with the election symbol ‘Elephant’’. Incumbent mayor Selina Hayat Ivy is contesting the polls with Awami League’s election symbol “Boat’. Taimur was also there in the Narayanganj City Corporation polls in 2011 but he stayed away from the voting as per party decision at that time.

Bangladesh Awami League has again chosen Dr Selina Hayat Ivy as its mayoral candidate to contest the Narayanganj City Corporation (NCC) election slated for January 16 next. Besides, the ruling party picked Khan Ahmed Shuvo as its MP candidate for Tangail-7 parliamentary by-polls scheduled to be held on the same date (Jan 16). The names of AL aspirants were finalised at a meeting of AL parliamentary and local government nomination boards, held in the afternoon with AL President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair at her official residence Ganobhaban. Since the formation of the Narayanganj City, incumbent mayor Dr Selina Hayat Ivy won the first two elections in 2011 and 2016. Earlier, she was the mayor of the erstwhile Narayanganj municipality. Read: Narayanganj city polls: Ivy to seek AL nomination The maiden election to NCC was held in a non-partisan manner in 2011. In 2016, Dr Ivy was reelected the NCC mayor as AL candidate as the mayoral election was held using party symbols unlike the councillor election in the city corporation. On November 30 last, the Election Commission announced schedules for NCC election and Tangail-7 by-polls. The parliamentary constituency fell vacant following the death of AL MP Akabbar Hossain on November 16. According to the schedules, the deadline for the submission of nomination papers is December 15, while the date for the scrutiny of nomination papers is December 20 and the last date for the withdrawal of candidature is December 27 in the NCC and Tangail-7 constituency. The third election to Narayanganj City will be held using electronic voting machines (EVM) instead of traditional ballot papers. Read: Mayor Ivy seeks curfew or lockdown in NCC Besides, the meeting finalized the names of AL chairman candidates for the Union Parishads of Parbatipur Upazila in Dinajpur district as well as the Union Parishads in Khulna and Barisal divisions, as the local bodies will go to polls in the 5th phase on January 5 next. A total of 707 Union Parishads will go to polls in this phase in 47 districts. According to the polls schedule announced by the EC, the deadline for the submission of nomination papers is December 07, while the date for the scrutiny of nomination papers is December 09 and the last date for the withdrawal of candidature is December 15.