Local leadership of AL to select candidates

Local leadership of Awami League (AL) would select the party candidates for the upcoming city corporation and municipality elections in their respective areas, said AL presidium member Tofail Ahmed.
"It''s the local leadership of the party which will select candidates for the local government elections as well as for the next general elections," he told reporters on Saturday at his residence.
Earlier the party said it would take part in local government polls on August 4 in a dramatic U-turn from its earlier stand to boycott all polls except the parliamentary elections.
"We are going to take part in all the city and municipal council polls on August 4," said acting president of the party Zillur Rahman.
"It is a unanimous decision of the party''s working committee. We are taking part in the polls in the greater interest of democracy in the country," he said.
The decision of the Awami League comes as a major boost for the interim government, which announced the local council polls schedule last week.
But the four-party alliance led by BNP is yet to decide on their participation in the local government polls.
Party sources said they would take decision today (Sunday) in a high-command meeting.
Awami League and BNP, the country''s two major political parties, earlier reacted sharply to the plan to hold the local polls before general elections.
They said they would boycott the local council polls, demanding that the current government first hold the parliamentary elections and allow an elected authority to hold the local polls.
BNP said it would hold nationwide demonstrations if the local polls go ahead