Both Jatiyo Party factions claim plough symbol; none may get it without court settlement

Ahead of the 13th national parliamentary election, both factions of the Jatiyo Party have collected nomination papers and announced candidates using the party's traditional plough symbol, leaving uncertainty over who will ultimately be allowed to use it.

One faction, led by GM Quader, has already announced candidates in 243 constituencies. At a press conference at a hotel in Gulshan on Friday, party Secretary General Shamim Haider Patwary unveiled the final list of candidates, saying the Jatiyo Party is prepared to contest the election with its party symbol and will remain active in the field until the last moment.

The other faction of the Jatiyo Party has formed a separate alliance ahead of the election. The alliance, named the National Democratic Front (NDF), has been formed under the leadership of Anisul Islam Mahmud and Anwar Hossain Manju, bringing together 18 political parties, including a section of the Jatiyo Party (JaPa) and Jatiyo Party (JP). The alliance partners are also preparing to field candidates in multiple constituencies.

A leader of this faction, speaking to The Business Standard on condition of anonymity, said around 250 candidates have already been finalised by the alliance. "We are submitting nominations using the Jatiyo Party's plough symbol. There is a possibility of a final court verdict on the symbol in the first week of January. We believe we will be awarded the plough symbol and our candidates will contest under it," he said.

The division within the Jatiyo Party has created complications over the allocation of the party symbol. The Election Commission has said the dispute over party leadership and symbol allocation is currently under court consideration.

Election Commissioner Abdur Rahmanel Masud told The Business Standard that the commission cannot allocate the party symbol to either faction without a court order or directive.

"If two factions of the same party submit nomination papers and claim the same symbol, the commission will not make any decision on its own. We are waiting for the court's ruling," he said.

He added that if no court instruction is received, Jatiyo Party candidates may have to contest the election without a party symbol, in which case they would run as independent candidates.

Meanwhile, the deadline for collecting and submitting nomination papers for the 13th parliamentary election will end at 5pm on Monday. According to the Election Commission's central coordination committee, a total of 2,780 nomination papers had been collected nationwide as of 4pm today (28 December), while 31 had been submitted.

The highest number of nomination papers – 506 – were collected in the Dhaka region, while the lowest – 127 – were collected in the Sylhet region.

Election Commissioner Abdur Rahmanel Masud said no decision has yet been taken on extending the nomination submission deadline.

He said the matter may be considered if all political parties jointly demand an extension, but for now the announced schedule remains unchanged.

Under the election schedule announced by Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin, the deadline for nomination submission is 29 December. After scrutiny and appeals, the last date for withdrawal of candidature is 20 January. Party symbols will be allocated on 21 January, and formal election campaigning will begin the following day.

Election Commission officials said the final list of candidates will be confirmed after the withdrawal deadline. If a party fields more than one candidate in the same constituency, one candidate must be finalised within the stipulated time.

Although both factions of the Jatiyo Party have made their presence visible in the election by collecting nominations and announcing candidates, the final outcome will depend on the court's decision on who is entitled to use the party's plough symbol.