156 upazilas vote in second phase of elections

In the second phase of the sixth upazila parishad elections, voters began exercising their franchise at 8am on Tuesday in 156 upazilas across Bangladesh.

Balloting is scheduled to continue until 4pm without any break under tight security.

As many as 1,824 candidates, including 603 for chairmen posts, are contesting the elections for 468 posts.

Over 35.2 million people are eligible to vote in this phase, according to the Election Commission.

Briefing the media about preparations for the polls, Election Commissioner Md Alamgir on Monday said the commission was not concerned about voter turnout, after expressing hope on Sunday that the turnout was likely to increase this time around.   

In the third phase, 112 upazilas will go to the polls on May 29, while the fourth and last phase of voting will take place in 55 upazilas on June 5.