The Delhi High Court has ruled that a political party does not have any exclusive right over the symbol allotted to it by the Election Commission and that the same can be taken back, if the party does not perform well during the elections.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad, while dismissing the appeal of Samata Party on November 3, had observed that election symbol was a mere token, which was allotted to a particular party to help the millions of illiterate voters exercise their franchise in favour of the candidate of their choice belonging to that party.
Quoting the Election Symbols (Reservation And Allotment) Order, 1968, the High Court noted that the right to use the symbol can be lost with the dismal performance of the party.
Samata Party had moved the High Court, challenging the Single-Bench order of October 19, which had refused to entertain its petition against the EC awarding the flaming torch symbol to the Shiv Sena faction led by former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.
Citing the Supreme Court verdict in Subramanian Swamy vs Election Commission of India case, the High Court observed that the symbol of a political party was neither a tangible thing, nor it generated any wealth.
In 1994, former Defence and Railway Minister George Fernandes, along with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, formed the Samata Party, after breaking off from the Janata Dal. Many members of the party joined the Janata Dal (United) in 2003.
However, some of the leaders continued with the name and symbol of Samata Party, which was derecognised by the Election Commission in 2004 and lost the symbol then. It is now being led by Uday Mandal.
On October 10 this year, the Election Commission had allotted the flaming torch symbol to Thackeray’s Shiv Sena faction, after which the Uddhav camp announced to contest the Andheri East by-elections on the same.
The Uday Mandal-led party approached the High Court, stating that even though it was derecognised in 2004, the symbol was allotted to it for the general elections of 2014.
The High Court ruled on October 19 that the party had failed to prove any demonstrable right over the symbol in question since it lost its status as a ‘recognised party’ in 2004.
The Division Bench noted that even though the members of the Samata Party were permitted to use the symbol of ‘flaming torch’, but as the party had been de-recognised in 2004, it had become a ‘free symbol’. The Election Commission, therefore, had every right to allot the free symbol to any party, it added.
Samata Party was represented by Advocates Bibhuti Bhusan Mishra, Shweta Priya, Shivalika, Kamlesh Kumar Mishra, Shubham Chauhan and Kailash Jha.
Advocates Sidhant Kumar, Vidhi Udhay Shankar and Manyaa Chandok appeared for the respondents.
(Case title: Samata Party Through Shri Uday Kr Mandal Its President v. Election Commission of India and Others)