NCP Protests EC's Decision to Drop 'Shapla' Symbol

The National Citizens' Party (NCP) has expressed strong dissatisfaction over the Election Commission’s (EC) decision to exclude the Shapla (water lily) symbol from the official list. NCP’s Chief Coordinator, Nasiruddin Patuwari, called the move “farcical and biased.” He stated, “There is no legal barrier preventing us from getting the Shapla symbol. If any obstacle is created, we will resist politically. For us, there is no alternative to Shapla.”

On Sunday (July 13), a five-member NCP delegation held a meeting with Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) A.M.M. Nasir Uddin at the EC headquarters. The team included the party’s chief southern organizer Hasnat Abdullah, northern organizer Sarjis Alam, and other leaders. After the meeting, Nasiruddin Patuwari spoke to the press.

According to EC sources, the commission has decided to add 46 new symbols to the existing 69, bringing the total number to 115. This updated list has been sent to the Ministry of Law for vetting. However, NCP’s top choice, the Shapla symbol, has not been included in the new list.

The NCP has expressed frustration over this decision. The party claims that when they applied for official registration on June 20, they listed Shapla as their first preference, followed by Pen and Mobile Phone. While Pen and Mobile Phone appear in the new draft, Shapla does not.

EC officials explained that a committee had initially proposed 150 symbols. From that list, 115 were shortlisted and submitted to the Ministry of Law for final approval. The Shapla symbol was not among the selected ones.

Previously, on April 17, another political party, Nagarik Oikya, led by Mahmudur Rahman, also applied for the Shapla symbol. As a result, both parties have had multiple meetings with the Election Commission regarding their demand for this particular symbol.