The Election Commission (EC) has removed the iconic boat symbol - long associated with the Awami League - from its official website, citing public confusion rather than political pressure.
The move comes amid heightened scrutiny following the party’s suspended registration and ongoing legal proceedings.
Speaking to reporters at Nirbachan Bhaban on Tuesday, EC Senior Secretary Md Akhtar Ahmed said the decision was “purely administrative,” aimed at preventing misperceptions surrounding the emblem.
“The symbol had sparked uncertainty among the public,” he said, adding that while it has been removed from the website, the boat remains in the gazette and will appear in the election schedule as a reserved symbol, meaning no other party may use it.
Earlier in the day, Md Rafiqul Haque, system manager at the EC Secretariat, confirmed to Dhaka Tribune that the removal was carried out following directives from higher authorities.
“We were told to update the site, so we did,” he said.
As of Wednesday morning, the EC’s website listed the Awami League under “registered political parties (registration suspended),” but the boat icon was no longer visible next to its name.
The decision follows public criticism, including a strongly worded Facebook post by Local Government Adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain, who questioned the EC’s rationale for sending the symbol to the Law Ministry for rescheduling.
“On what grounds did you send the cursed boat symbol to the Law Ministry? As a constitutional body, is this how you respond to a people’s uprising?” he wrote.
On August 5, 2024, the Awami League government was ousted in a mass student-led uprising.
Subsequently, on May 12, the interim government banned all activities of the party and its affiliated wings until the completion of trials at the International Crimes Tribunal.
The EC then suspended the party’s registration, effectively halting its political operations.
Despite the suspension, Election Commissioner Abdur Rashid El Mahsud had earlier said that the boat symbol would not be immediately scrapped, noting that electoral symbols are owned by the EC and not by individual parties.
The EC’s move has reignited debate over the future of electoral symbols and the role of constitutional bodies in post-uprising Bangladesh.