Bangladesh EC asks NCP to pick electoral symbol by Oct 19 amid Shapla symbol row

Dhaka, Oct 14 Bangladesh’s Election Commission (EC) has once again written to National Citizen Party (NCP), asking it to select an electoral symbol from the reserved list by October 19, EC Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed said on Tuesday, the local media reported.

The remarks came amid the NCP’s persistent demand for Shapla (water lily) as its electoral symbol, with the party recently threatening to reject its registration if the EC fails to comply.

“We have sent a letter to them (NCP) asking them to inform us of their desired symbol by October 19. If they do not inform us by October 19, the Election Commission will take a decision on the symbol at its own discretion,” Bangladeshi leading media outlet UNB quoted Ahmed as saying, addressing reporters at Nirbachan Bhaban in Dhaka.

Regarding the Shapla symbol row, Ahmed said, “NCP's desired symbol is the 'shapla'. But since it is not included in the EC's list of approved symbols, there is no scope to allocate it. We have already sent a letter, asking them to inform us of their preferred symbol by October 19. If they fail to do so by that date, the Election Commission will decide on the symbol at its own discretion.”

When asked whether the issue could spark unrest, he replied, “We'll see when the time comes”.

On the question of legal barriers to including "shapla" in the list of electoral symbols, he said, “There are no legal barriers, but EC believes there is no need to include it as an election symbol.”

Last week, the NCP warned of far-reaching consequences that could seriously impact next year's elections if it is denied the Shapla symbol.

Speaking to Bangladesh’s leading newspaper, The Daily Star, Patwary stated that the party will work towards forming an independent and constitutional EC through democratic means if its demand is not met.

“If the NCP does not get the Shapla symbol, it will definitely affect the election. Without an independent commission, there can be no fair polls. If the election is not fair, there will be bloodshed on the streets. But we will try to avoid that. If our backs are against the wall, we will have no choice but to resist,” said Patwary.

“If we are deprived of this right, we will work to form an independent and constitutional election commission democratically. We will not back down from achieving our demands and will continue our fight politically” he added.

Bangladesh is facing growing uncertainty and political turmoil ahead of next year's election.

The student leaders had earlier collaborated with Muhammad Yunus and several other radical political parties to overthrow the democratically elected Awami League government led by former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

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