The National Citizens’ Party (NCP) is not part of the joint movement being carried out by Jamaat-e-Islami and other Islamist parties under their seven-point demand, said NCP convener Nahid Islam. He made the statement on Friday (19 September) at a briefing following a meeting with grassroots leaders and activists at the Shaheed Abu Sayeed International Convention Center in Shahbagh, Dhaka. Nahid Islam emphasized that there is no alternative to a Constituent Assembly election to provide legal validity to the July Charter. “The NCP supports a proportional representation (PR) system in the upper house, not the lower house. That is why we are not aligned with the joint movement of Jamaat-e-Islami and others,” he said.

Rejecting the idea of an alliance with major political parties at this stage, the NCP convener stated that the party would move forward with an independent political vision. “Since we are demanding both a Constituent Assembly and a national election together, we have instructed our members to prepare for that joint election. By October, NCP will return to the field with upazila-level convening committees,” he added.

On the issue of party registration, Nahid Islam expressed optimism about securing the election symbol. “The Election Commission has failed to provide any valid reason for denying us the Shapla (water lily) symbol. We are hopeful that we will be allotted the Shapla,” he said.

NCP member secretary Akhtar Hossain, also speaking at the briefing, noted that discussions had been held on alliances and the Constituent Assembly. “Our grassroots leaders have pointed out that Awami loyalists are still roaming around freely. We demand that they be brought under the law,” he stated.