Supreme Court Move by Sharad Pawar Against Ajit Pawar Over Clock Symbol in Maharashtra Elections.
The Supreme Court has been approached by the Sharad Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), objecting to the ongoing use of the clock symbol by the Ajit Pawar faction [Sharad Pawar vs Ajit Anantrao Pawar and anr].
Claiming that Ajit Pawar has caused “large-scale confusion” among voters by utilizing the clock symbol tied to Sharad Pawar, the Sharad Pawar camp argues, “[Ajit Pawar] has been capitalizing on the persistent confusion among the populace due to the long-standing link between the ‘Clock’ symbol and the Petitioner.”
Consequently, they have requested that the Ajit Pawar faction be assigned a different symbol for the forthcoming Maharashtra State Assembly elections.
The matter is set to be heard by a Bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan on October 15.
Notably, the current term of the Maharashtra Assembly concludes on November 26. Earlier, in March, the Supreme Court had allowed the Ajit Pawar faction to use the clock symbol for the 2024 parliamentary and Maharashtra State elections, albeit under specific conditions.
This followed the Election Commission’s recognition of Ajit Pawar’s faction as the legitimate NCP amid a party split.
When the Sharad Pawar faction contested the ECI’s decision, the Supreme Court permitted Ajit to retain the symbol temporarily until it could determine which faction should be acknowledged as the true NCP.
The apex court mandated that the Ajit faction include disclaimers in any election advertisements featuring the NCP’s clock symbol to indicate that the allocation was still in dispute.
Furthermore, it directed that such disclaimers be included in every advertisement template and in audio and video materials released on behalf of this faction.
Importantly, the Court also provisionally recognized the Sharad Pawar faction of the NCP as a political entity, granting it the symbol of a man blowing a tutari (trumpet).
In a recent application submitted through advocate Abishek Jebaraj on September 25, the veteran leader has requested that a new symbol be allotted to the Ajit Pawar faction to minimize confusion during the campaigning for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections.
It was argued that assigning a new symbol to the Ajit Pawar faction is essential to uphold the integrity of the clock symbol, given that the ownership dispute regarding it remains sub-judice.
This measure will also foster free and fair elections by eliminating the potential for any ill-intentioned actors to exploit the “existing and apparent confusion,” it was contended.
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