NCP names Nasiruddin for Dhaka South, Asif for North

The National Citizens Party (NCP) has decided in principle to field its spokesperson Asif Mahmud Sajeeb Bhuiyan for Dhaka North City Corporation and chief coordinator Nasiruddin Patwari for Dhaka South, reversing its earlier mayoral candidate lineup, with the party expected to formally announce the changes at a press conference within the next two to three days.

As part of the reshuffle, both leaders have already transferred their voter registration to their respective constituencies: Asif moved from Dhaka South to Ward 37 in Aftabnagar under Dhaka North, while Nasiruddin shifted from Uttara in Dhaka North to Ward 21 in Dhaka South. NCP joint conveners Sarwar Tushar and Monira Sharmin confirmed that the party's top leadership had finalised the decision, though neither elaborated extensively on the specific calculations underpinning the swap.

The latest move reverses the candidates announced on March 29, when NCP Convener and Opposition Chief Whip Nahid Islam had named Ariful Islam Adib for Dhaka North and Asif Mahmud Sajeeb Bhuiyan for Dhaka South--a lineup that has now been effectively inverted for the party's two flagship mayoral contests in the capital. NCP Joint Member Secretary Alauddin Mohammad said the adjustment reflected the changing political circumstances and the party's evolving electoral strategy, adding that further candidate changes remained possible until the election schedule was formally announced and final nominations submitted.

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Taken together, the reshuffle underscores the degree of fluidity still characterising the NCP's candidate selection process barely months ahead of the city polls, even as the party continues to project an image of internal cohesion amid what insiders describe as a carefully calibrated recalibration of its electoral strategy in the capital.