Chief Organiser (North) of the National Citizen Party (NCP) Sarjis Alam has warned that if the Election Commission (EC) turns into a partisan body like before, it will face the same fate as its predecessors.

“We want the EC to maintain the constitutional status of the institution in a highly impartial, fair, and independent manner,” he said.

The NCP leader made the remarks at a press conference following a meeting with the conveners and member secretaries of four districts under the Mymensingh division, held at a hotel in the city on Monday evening.

Sarjis Alam said those “murderers who ordered the killing of more than a thousand people during the July uprising, as well as those involved in the genocide, BDR massacre, Shapla Chattar killings, and incidents of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings, cannot participate in any democratic election in Bangladesh.”

He added that the Awami League and its ally Jatiya Party “have no moral right to contest the next election.”

Regarding the party’s electoral symbol, Sarjis Alam said the NCP will contest the polls with the symbol ‘Shapla Koli’ (water lily bud). “However, we will continue to call upon the EC to act neutrally. If they behave in the same way as before, it will create a serious crisis of confidence,” he warned.

The party’s senior joint member secretary Nahida Sarwar Nibha, divisional organizing secretary Ashiqin Alam, and other local leaders were also present at the event.