Dhaka, May 25 -- Zahangir Alam, a popular politician expelled for a second time recently by the Awami League, has delivered a major upset to the ruling party by propelling his mother Jayeda Khatun to the office of mayor of Gazipur, a key stronghold of the party in the general election which is just six months away.

His supporter base did enough to hand the 61-year-old 'self-educated' widow a slim win of 16,203 votes, potentially saving the political career of her beleaguered son and causing an electoral bloodbath of her nearest rival, the ruling party's Azmat Ullah Khan, who had been mayor of the erstwhile Tongi municipality for 18 years.

Jayeda, who ran in the place of Zahangir after his candidacy was declared invalid, secured a total ...