The Mamata Banerjee-led faction of the Trinamool Congress has proposed three alternative names and two election symbols to the Election Commission of India after the poll panel temporarily froze the All India Trinamool Congress name and its familiar ‘Flowers and Grass’ (Jora Phool) symbol, according to sources cited by Anandabazar Online.
The three names proposed by the Mamata camp are All India Trinamool Mamata Congress, All India Mamata Trinamool Congress and Mamata Trinamool Congress, the report said. For its temporary election symbol, the faction has suggested a footballer with a football and a cricket bat. The choices were reportedly emailed to the Election Commission around midnight on Thursday. The Commission had not approved any of the proposed names or symbols at the time of the report.
The submission follows an interim order by the Election Commission amid competing claims over the identity and control of the Trinamool Congress. The poll panel has temporarily barred the rival factions from using the All India Trinamool Congress name and the reserved Flowers and Grass symbol until the dispute is substantively decided.
Why the EC froze the TMC name and symbol?
The dispute emerged after a split within the party, with rival groups staking claim to the TMC's organisational and electoral identity. The Election Commission has said that the competing claims require adjudication under Paragraph 15 of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968, which deals with disputes involving rival groups of a recognised political party.
With bypolls scheduled in Nandigram and Rejinagar on October 6, the Commission said there was insufficient time to complete the proceedings before the electoral process. It therefore adopted an interim arrangement, asking the rival camps to choose separate names and symbols for the bypolls.
The development means the upcoming contests will mark a significant departure for the party founded by Mamata Banerjee in 1998. For the first time in 28 years, the established TMC name and its Jora Phool symbol will not appear on EVMs in Bengal while the interim freeze remains in place.
The Mamata camp has challenged the EC's interim action, while complying with its direction to submit alternative choices. Reports said its response was sent “under strongest protest”, reflecting its objection to being prevented from using the party's established identity while the larger dispute remains unresolved.
Attention now turns to the Election Commission, which will decide the temporary names and symbols to be allotted to the rival groups for the bypolls. The broader question of which faction is ultimately entitled to the TMC name and its Flowers and Grass symbol remains pending before the poll panel.
