Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council has demanded the deferment of the voting in the Rangpur by-election since the day falls on 'Mahasaptami' of the Hindu festival of Durga Puja.
A letter signed by the Council’s General Secretary Rana Dasgupta was sent to the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) on Monday (Sept 16).
The letter states that if voting is not delayed then people from minority communities will not be able to vote.
Thanking the EC for security during upazila elections, the letter asks for the date to be moved from Oct 5 to another date.
On Sept 1, the EC declared a schedule for the by-election and the last date for the submission of nomination papers was Sept 9, with selection on Sept 11 and last date of withdrawal set for Sept 16.
Earlier, EC Secretary Md Alamgir had said that the by-election for Rangpur-3 will not be deferred; it the date is changed then there will be a lot of inconvenience.”