Nasiruddin Patwary, the chief coordinator of the National Citizens Party (NCP), accused the Election Commission (EC) of operating in a lawless, arbitrary manner.
He made the remarks on Sunday (October 19) during a media briefing after a meeting with the EC.
Regarding the Shapla (water lily) election symbol, Nasiruddin said the commission must provide a written explanation for not granting the symbol. “The EC is acting like the jungle law — power is exercised by whoever can, whenever they want. In a democratic process, the Election Commission should not be beholden to any family or religious institution. The EC is for all people,” he added.
He emphasized that the Election Commission does not belong to any political party and should not be turned into a cantonment. By calling the Shapla symbol a state symbol, the EC has created political unrest.
Nasiruddin also noted that without a transparent voter list, free and fair elections are impossible. Discussions were held with the EC on how to ensure transparency in the upcoming election. He expressed confidence that the Shapla symbol would eventually be granted.
Commenting on the July Charter, he said the parliament is currently inactive on this “theatrical” matter, and no referendum directives have come from the EC. NCP will not accept the July Charter through “silent consent.” According to him, the current election commissioners serve hidden agendas and must be freed from invisible influences.
Meanwhile, Hasnat Abdullah, NCP’s chief organizer for the southern region, also speaking after the meeting at the EC Secretariat, said the Election Commission’s “remote control” is not in Agargaon.
Hasnat expressed concern that the EC’s activities are becoming institutionalized autocracy. He pointed out the lack of clear policies for including symbols in the election schedule, especially regarding why the Shapla symbol was excluded. He further noted that there is no transparency in how symbols were allocated to political parties.
He compared the EC’s behavior to that of medieval despotic rulers who made laws arbitrarily. While not accusing the commission of intentionally acting this way, Hasnat sees a disturbing similarity.
He stressed that cultural and social considerations should guide the acceptance of symbols, ensuring they never alienate or discriminate against the public. Unfortunately, the Election Commission is making autocratic decisions without regard to these concerns.
