NDP meets EC, wants recognition as a political party

The National Democratic Party (NDP), founded by Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, has expressed its intention to seek registration as a political party, attributing past rejections to the founder's controversial role.

Following a meeting with Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin at the commission's office in Agargaon this afternoon, NDP Chairman Md Abu Taher told reporters that previous governments had declined to register the party due to political reasons.

"We discussed our earlier efforts with the Election Commission. The registration was denied by autocratic regimes, and we explained those circumstances to the EC," said Taher.

He claimed that although the party had fulfilled all necessary criteria, it was not granted registration because Salauddin Quader Chowdhury served as the party's secretary general at the time.

Chowdhury, a former BNP lawmaker, was sentenced to death by the International Crimes Tribunal and executed in 2015 for war crimes committed during the Liberation War in 1971. He founded NDP in 1989.

"Our leaders and activists have long been on the streets opposing fascist rule. As a national democratic party engaged in political movements for years, we believe it is time for us to be officially recognised," said the NDP chairman.

Taher, however, clarified that the party has not yet submitted a formal application for registration.

A five-member NDP delegation attended the meeting with the Election Commission. Among them were Secretary General Abdullah Harun Sohel and presidium members Musa Mondol, Jamil Ahmed, and Mizanur Rahman Patwari.