Yogendra Yadav-led Swaraj India challenges SEC order denying a common symbol

The Delhi High Court today heard a petition filed by Yogendra Yadav’s political party Swaraj India, challenging the State Election Commission’s (SEC) decision to reject their plea for a common symbol for the upcoming municipal corporation elections in the capital..Swaraj India was represented by Senior Counsel Arvind Nigam, who mentioned the matter for urgent hearing at 10.30 am today, before the Division Bench of Badar Durrez Ahmed and Ashutosh Kumar, JJ..The Bench heeded to the request and listed the matter for today before the bench of Justice Hima Kohli. The matter was, however, adjourned since the documents were not supplied to the SEC..The petition has been filed for quashing of the orders dated February 21 and March 7 denying the petitioners’ request for a common symbol to contest the MCD polls. The petitioners allege that the impugned orders are in conflict with the position laid down and practiced by the Election Commission of India (ECI) and other State Election Commissions of the country..According to the SEC orders, unrecognized parties registered by the ECI shall be treated as independent candidates for the allotment of symbols and the unrecognized parties won’t be given any preference over other independent candidates. The State Election Commission, in effect, has made it mandatory not to allot a common symbol to the candidates nominated by such a party..This consequently means that all the candidates of an unrecognized registered party will have to contest the elections on separate symbols, like the independent candidates..Swaraj India has 272 nominated candidates for the upcoming MCD elections..The petitioners allege that this denial amounts to “a colorable exercise of delegated powers with a malafide intent to circumvent the mandate of the Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Act, 2011 to hold free and fair elections of Councillors to the Corporation.”.The petitioners further claim that,.“Permitting a registered but unrecognized political party to have a common symbol for all candidates is very important as it creates a level playing field for a fair contest between registered unrecognized political parties and registered recognized political parties (who have common symbols) and further ensures that there is no discrimination against registered but unrecognized political parties.”.The hearing is now set to take place on March 20..Image taken from here.