Bagerhat: Ranipara union at Kachua in Bagerhat for its first time is going to witness an electoral battle between a woman and his son for chairman post in the upcoming election timetabled to be held on March 22.

Taslima Begum is contesting the polls for the chairman post with ruling Awami League’s boat symbol, while her son, Mehedi Hasan Babu, is running as an independent candidate with the election symbol of pineapple.

Local people said it is, in fact, the son’s battle against his father, SM Mahfuzur Rahman, the current upazila chairman.

Mahfuzur Rahman has already disowned his son publicly for not conforming to his family’s wishes, which is why Mehedi is campaigning from outside the district, while his mother is promoting her campaign from door to-door.

Mahfuz, a local Awami League leader, was the chairman of Ranipara union from 1998 to 2008, after which he was elected as the Kachua upazila chairman.

His wife Taslima was elected Ranipara union chairman in 2011 in his place.

Mehedi admitted that he is competing not against his mother, but against his father’s oppressive activities in the region.

He brought allegations against his father of intimidation and disrupting his campaign, an allegation turned down by Mahfuz.

Mahfuz, however, accused Mehdi of ‘bringing shame’ upon their family.

Branding his son as rebellious and drug addict, he said Mehedi has leaned towards BNP-Jamaat’s politics and brought shame upon the family by marrying a BNP leader’s daughter.

But, Taslima blames it on Mehedi’s ‘mental problem’, claiming that he was ‘not in his right state of mind’ when he stood for election against her.

Fully confident about her victory, she revealed that they have no contact with their son after he left their house.

According to voters, although Taslima is well ahead of her son in terms of popularity, her son is not lagging behind either.

Seema Rani Shil, a voter from Khalishakhali village, said although it is a mother-son contest, she will cast her vote only after careful consideration.

Bikash Dutta, another voter from Narendrapur village, voiced his dilemma in choosing candidate—Taslima or Mehedi!

Ranipara has some 13,678 voters in its 19 villages.

Ranipara returning officer and local fisheries official Kabir Hossain said neither of the candidates had brought any complaint against each other yet.