Who gets the preferred symbol when there are two factions?

Who gets the preferred symbol when there are two factions?

Sub :Polity

Sec: Elections

Context:

• Sharad Pawar, founder of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), has filed a plea in the Supreme Court to prevent the Ajit Pawar faction from using the ‘clock’ symbol in the upcoming assembly elections in Maharashtra.

About NCP:

• The NCP is recognized as a state party in Maharashtra and Nagaland.
• The election symbol of NCP is an analogue alarm clock. The clock is drawn in blue and has two legs and an alarm button. It is situated on a tri-coloured Indian flag.

About the case:

• In July 2023, a split occurred within the NCP, with the Ajit Pawar faction claiming the support of 41 MLAs out of 53 in the Maharashtra assembly.
• In February 2024, the ECI recognized the Ajit Pawar faction as the real NCP and allotted it the clock symbol.
• The faction led by Sharad Pawar was given the common symbol of man blowing turha.
• The plea from NCP (Sharad Pawar) claims that during the Lok Sabha elections, voters experienced confusion regarding which faction truly represented the NCP, prompting them to seek freezing of the clock symbol and allocating a new symbol for the Ajit Pawar faction.

How are symbols allotted:

• The Election Commission of India (ECI) allocates symbols to political parties based on the Symbols Order.
• According to the Symbols Order, in the event of a split in a recognized political party, the Election Commission of India determines which faction retains recognition and allocates the reserved symbol to that group.

Symbol Freezing:

• The ECI has historically frozen party symbols in disputes, such as the two leaves symbol of AIADMK and the bow and arrow symbol of Shiv Sena, to resolve competing claims before determining the outcome of the dispute.

Criteria for Recognition of Factions:

• The Supreme Court, in the case of Sadiq Ali versus ECI (1971), established the 3-test formula for determining which faction is to be recognised as the original political party.
  1. Aims and objectives of the party
  2. Adherence to the party’s constitution that reflect inner party democracy
  3. Majority in the legislative and organisation wings.

ECI’s February 2024 order:

• In its February 2024 ruling, the ECI found no dispute between the two factions of the NCP regarding the first test of legitimacy and deemed the second test unnecessary since neither faction adhered to the party constitution.
• Thus, ECI determined the issue based solely on legislative majority, siding with the Ajit Pawar faction, which had majority support.

Recent developments:

• In the recent Lok Sabha elections, the NCP (SP) faction won eight seats with its new symbol, compared to just one seat for Ajit Pawar’s faction, which used the traditional clock symbol.
• The Supreme Court generally refrains from interfering in electoral processes as it comes under the domain of Election Commission of India (ECI). However, it may intervene under exceptional circumstances to ensure fair elections.
• Given the recent electoral performance of the NCP (SP) and the challenge against the ECI’s recognition of the Ajit Pawar faction, the Supreme Court may consider directing the ECI to freeze the clock symbol for the upcoming assembly elections.