Bangladesh-born British politician Lutfur Rahman has secured a comeback by winning the vote to become mayor of Tower Hamlets in East London.
“I am honoured to have been elected as your next mayor of Tower Hamlets. Thank you for your support. Let’s get to work rebuilding our borough and our children’s future,” he tweeted.
Rahman thanked all those who came out to participate in their democracy.
After the five-year ban placed on him for standing for public office lapsed, Rahman managed to unseat the incumbent mayor, Labour’s John Biggs, under the banner of his Aspire party, reports The Guardian.
Rahman was kicked out of office in 2015 after a specialist court concluded that he was guilty of vote-rigging, buying votes and religious intimidation.
But the police and Crown Prosecution Service decided there was insufficient evidence to launch a criminal prosecution.
Rahman won 40,804 votes on the second round, with Biggs on 33,487.
The result is a blow to Labour in what was otherwise a very successful set of results in London, where it took Wandsworth, Barnet and Westminster from the Tories, according to The Guardian.
Source: United News of Bangladesh