The Calcutta High Court on Monday reserved its verdict in the Indian Secular Front’s (ISF) petition challenging the Election Commission’s decision to allot the envelope symbol to the Ritabrata Banerjee-led Democratic Trinamool Congress (DTC).
During the hearing, Justice Krishna Rao expressed concern over the Election Commission’s handling of the matter, questioning the legal basis for allocating the symbol to another political party and seeking clarity on whether the ISF’s claim had been duly considered.
“The High Court is concerned about the authorities’ functioning. The court wants the authorities to act in such a manner that they do not have to face questions later, and the court does not have to intervene,” Justice Rao observed.
While acknowledging that the ISF might not have an absolute right to its previously used symbol, the judge said the party’s demand for its restoration was understandable.
“How can you allot that symbol to another party?” the judge asked the Election Commission.
Court questions legal basis for symbol allocation
Appearing for the Election Commission, advocate Jishnu Chowdhury argued that general elections and by-elections were distinct processes and that the Commission had the final authority to allot free symbols.
He maintained that a political party did not have an inherent right over a particular election symbol, adding that symbols were not the property of any party.
However, the explanation did not satisfy the court.
Justice Rao questioned whether the Commission had any documentary record showing that it had considered the ISF’s application before allotting the envelope symbol to the DTC.
“I understand that the Commission allotted the symbol to the Democratic Trinamool Congress following its application. But where are the documents showing that the ISF had applied and that its request was considered?” the judge asked.
He further sought to know under which legal provision the Commission had allocated the symbol to the DTC, observing that the Commission’s submissions were not satisfactory.
In a sharp observation, Justice Rao said the Commission appeared to have committed an irregularity in advance, with its counsel now attempting to defend the decision.
“If the Election Commission is being driven by one side, then this is what was bound to happen,” the judge remarked, adding that a lack of transparency in the authority’s functioning would invite such questions.
Representing the ISF, senior advocate Bikas Ranjan Bhattacharya argued that while the Election Commission had the authority to allot symbols, that power could not be exercised arbitrarily or in a one-sided manner.
“The authority to allot symbols cannot be exercised unilaterally,” Bhattacharya submitted.
The court has reserved its verdict.
The dispute comes ahead of the October 6 by-elections in Nandigram in East Midnapore and Rejinagar in Murshidabad.
The Election Commission has allotted the envelope symbol, which the ISF had used in two previous Assembly elections, to the DTC. The ISF, led by Bhangar MLA Naushad Siddiqui, has instead been allotted the cupboard symbol for the upcoming bypolls.
Siddiqui wrote to the Commission seeking the restoration of the envelope symbol and subsequently approached the Calcutta High Court on September 21.
The party has argued that the symbol has been closely associated with its electoral identity and challenged the Commission’s decision to allot it to another political outfit. The court proceedings have placed the Commission’s decision-making process under scrutiny, particularly the records and legal provisions governing the allocation.
