Leaders of the Anisul Islam Mahmud-led Jatiya Party faction on Saturday claimed that the party鈥檚 electoral symbol 鈥榩lough鈥� was theirs.
The faction鈥檚 chairman Anisul Islam Mahmud made the claim at a press conference at its central office in the capital鈥檚 Gulshan area.
Referring to the party constitution and the Representation of the People Order, he said that the leaders elected through a council would be the legal leadership of the party and deserved the party鈥檚 electoral symbol.
鈥榃e held the party鈥檚 pre-scheduled central national conference on August 9 and the conference elected the party鈥檚 new central committee,鈥� he said.
The councillors of the party from across the country in the council session elected the central committee with Anisul Islam Mahmud as president and ABM Ruhul Amin Hawlader as secretary general, he said.
鈥榃e have submitted the names of the party鈥檚 central committee to the Election Commission,鈥� he said and added that, after the formation of a new committee, Ghulam Muhamad Quader was no longer the party chairman and had no right to claim himself as the party chairman.
Apparently meaning GM Quader, he said that the symbol 鈥榩lough鈥� was not the symbol of any specific person.
鈥楶lough is the electoral symbol of the Jatiya Party. So, as per the law and the party constitution, our leadership is the legal leadership of the Jatiya Party and deserves the electoral symbol 鈥減lough鈥�,鈥� he said.
He urged the Election Commission to allocate 鈥榩lough鈥� as the electoral symbol for the Jatiya Party led by him.
The faction secretary general ABM Ruhul Amin Hawlader, senior co-chairman Kazi Firoz Rashid, executive chairman Mujibul Haque Chunnu, co-chairman Syed Abu Hossain Babla, and central leader Jahirul Islam Jahir, among others, attend the press conference.
Chief election commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin has recently said that they are not getting the real owner of the Jatiya Party鈥檚 symbol for allocation.
On August 9, Anisul-led faction held the party鈥檚 10th national council session in Dhaka, leaving aside the GM Quader-led Jatiya Party, and formed a committee by voice vote of councillors.
The party saw a split for the seventh time on the day.
The latest rift in the party occurred following the expulsion of 10 senior leaders, including Anisul Islam Mahmud and Mujibul Haque Chunnu, who on July 7 filed a case with a Dhaka court alleging that they were expelled by party chair GM Quader, violating the party鈥檚 constitution.