A man has been detained in connection with an attack on Mostafizur Rahman Sumon, a crime reporter at online news portal Agami News, on the day of the Dhaka City Corporation elections on Saturday.

The turnout was less than 20 percent in 709 centres in the February 1 Dhaka city polls, shows Election Commission data on all the 2,468 centres released yesterday.

The elections failed badly due to EVMs (electronic voting machines), the paddy sheaf symbol was not even included in many of the machines, Ishraque Hossain alleges.

Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader has said the apathy of voters during the recently held Dhaka city elections is not good for democracy.

Whether voters needed help or not, polling agents of the ruling party insisted on being by their sides at all times -- even inside the sacred area of the polling booth where nobody save the EVM machine is supposed to be a witness.

In the absence of rival party activists, journalists covering the Dhaka city election at various polling centres yesterday were apparently a thorn on the side of ruling party candidates and their supporters.

The polling atmosphere was eerily festive. Almost too peaceful to be true. Election posters flooded every nook and cranny of the capital. Supporters of the candidates, mostly from the Awami League, were seen outside the polling centres. Law enforcers patrolled the streets while peace prevailed.

Unlike any polls in the past, eligible city dwellers yesterday were free to exercise their right to vote through machine, for the first time, at all centres across Dhaka.

Yesterday’s Dhaka city polls may appear to many a re-run of the national election held on December 30, 2018, because of some aspects.

For most it was the first EVM experience and for many the experience was not pleasant.

But isn’t it the responsibility of the Election Commission to create a congenial atmosphere for holding a free and fair election?

At least thirty-three complaints on election-time irregularities have been lodged with the Election Commission (EC) till this afternoon.

Awami League presidium member Jahangir Kabir Nanak says there is no need for polling agents during an Electronic Voting Machine (EVM)-only election.

Mostafizur Rahman Sumon, a crime reporter of online news portal Agami News, has been attacked while taking photos of a gathering of Awami League activists at Zafrabad in Mohammadpur.

Gano Front mayor candidate for Dhaka South City Corporation Abdus Samad Sujan boycott the elections after bringing allegations of vote rigging and grabbing of polling centers by ruling party men.

Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) mayoral candidate for Dhaka North City Corporation Ahmad Sajedul Haque Rubel claimed that there were incidents of crude bomb blasts in parts of the city, to induce fear among the voters so that they do not show up at the polling stations.

The Chief Election Commissioner’s fingerprint did not match with the server information when he tried to cast his vote at Uttara.

Gonoforum President and Jatiya Oikyafront Convener Dr Kamal Hossain is not satisfied with the election atmosphere as presence of voters is thin at polling centres.

Kalpana Palma, a resident of Rajabazar, come to cast her vote at the Rotary Primary School voting centre at 9:30am.

Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda said polling agents should have the strength to stay put at polling centres.