Narsingdi-2 and Ctg-8: Jamaat asks EC to drop 'scales' from ballot in support of NCP candidates

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has applied to the Election Commission (EC) seeking the removal of its "scales" symbol from the ballot papers in the Narsingdi-2 and Chattogram-8 constituencies.

Jamaat-e-Islami Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar sent a letter in this regard to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin.

The matter was confirmed today (29 January) by Sarwar Tushar, the National Citizen Party (NCP)–nominated candidate for the Narsingdi-2 constituency.

The letter stated that Jamaat had initially nominated Md Amzad Hossain for Narsingdi-2 (Constituency No-200) and Md Abu Naser for Chattogram-8 (Constituency No-285) for the national parliamentary election scheduled to be held on 12 February.

However, in line with seat-sharing arrangements within the 10-party electoral alliance, Jamaat later withdrew its nominated candidates from both constituencies.

Subsequently, the party decided to support Sarwar Tushar, the NCP-nominated candidate in Narsingdi-2, and Jubairul Hasan Arif, the NCP-nominated candidate in Chattogram-8.

The letter further noted that since Jamaat-nominated candidates are no longer contesting in these two constituencies, retaining the "scales" symbol on the ballot papers could create confusion among voters.

For this reason, the party requested the EC to remove its symbol from the ballot papers in the two constituencies. At the end of the letter, Jamaat urged the EC to kindly consider the matter and take necessary steps.

Regarding the issue, Sarwar Tushar said, "From the 11-party alliance, he has been finally nominated as the NCP candidate for Narsingdi-2 constituency." "Jamaat candidate in the constituency was Amzad Hossain.

Although he intended to withdraw his nomination in line with party instructions on the final day of withdrawal, he was unable to do so due to unforeseen circumstances. As a result, the returning officer allotted a symbol to him," he added.