Seven individuals were detained in Jamalpur Sadar’s Narundi area on Wednesday night after BNP activists alleged they were distributing money to voters. The detainees were handed over to police along with Tk 113,000. The arrests took place in front of Mirapara Government Primary School polling center, where the suspects were reportedly sitting in an autorickshaw.

BNP leaders claimed the detainees were working for Jamaat-e-Islami candidate Abdus Sattar and were offering money to secure votes for his ‘daaripalla’ symbol. Jamaat, however, denied any link to the detainees, saying they were falsely labeled as Jamaat activists for political propaganda. Jamaat’s district publicity secretary Zakiyul Islam stated that none of the detained individuals were affiliated with their party.

Narundi Police Investigation Center in-charge Sajibur Rahman confirmed that no campaign materials or leaflets of the Jamaat candidate were found with the detainees. He added that their political affiliation could not be immediately verified and that they would be presented before a mobile court.