Rahul Gandhi attacks EC over interim freeze on TMC name, symbol

• Rahul Gandhi attacks the EC over freezing the TMC name and “Flowers and Grass” symbol for West Bengal bypolls

• EC says rival Mamata Banerjee and Arup Roy factions must use temporary names and symbols pending a final decision

• Both factions are asked to submit three preferred names and symbols for the 6 October Nandigram and Rejinagar bypolls

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday attacked the Election Commission over its interim decision to bar rival Trinamool Congress factions from using the party’s name and its “Flowers and Grass” election symbol in the upcoming West Bengal bypolls.

Rahul Gandhi said the Election Commission’s constitutional responsibility was to protect the electoral mandate, but alleged that the poll panel was instead aiding forces that overturn the people’s verdict. His remarks came a day after the EC froze the use of the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) name and its reserved symbol for the bypolls.

“First Shiv Sena, then NCP, and now Trinamool Congress. Every time, the same pattern — BJP and the Election Commission join forces to split a party. Then its election symbol is snatched away,” Rahul Gandhi said in a post in Hindi on X.

He further alleged that if an entire political party could be “stolen”, it was hardly surprising that the votes of crores of Indians could also be “stolen”. Rahul Gandhi described “vote chori, government chori” and “party chori” as symbols of what he called a decline in democratic institutions.

“The ECI’s constitutional responsibility is to protect the mandate but instead, it’s aiding those very forces that overturn the people’s verdict,” he said.

Rahul Gandhi also framed the dispute as extending beyond the Trinamool Congress, saying the fight was “not just Mamata Banerjee’s” but concerned every political party and voter seeking free and fair elections.

The Congress had on Thursday also criticised the EC’s interim order, calling it an “abdication of constitutional responsibility”. Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal described chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s decision as a “late night birthday gift” to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Election Commission issued its interim order on Thursday after hearing rival claims over control of the AITC. It said it was of the view that there were two rival groups within the party — one led by Mamata Banerjee and the other by Arup Roy — with both claiming to represent the recognised political party.

The commission said the dispute required a substantive determination under Paragraph 15 of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968. Since there was limited time before the upcoming bypolls to complete the substantive proceedings, it decided to put an interim arrangement in place.

Under the order, neither faction is permitted to use the name “All India Trinamool Congress” or the reserved “Flowers and Grass” symbol for the current bypolls. The interim arrangement will remain in force until the Commission makes a final determination on the dispute.

The two factions have instead been asked to submit three preferred names and three free symbols, in order of preference, by 11 am on 18 September. The EC may approve one of the proposed names for each faction and allot separate symbols from its list of free symbols for the bypolls.

The order applies to the 6 October assembly bypolls in Nandigram and Rejinagar, where both rival camps have fielded candidates.

The dispute centres on competing claims over the organisational control of the AITC. The rival side has challenged the continuation of the party’s existing organisational structure, while the Mamata Banerjee camp has disputed the validity of the rival faction’s organisational claims.

According to the EC proceedings, the rival factions have submitted documents and arguments in support of their respective claims. The Commission will now undertake the substantive process under Paragraph 15 before determining which faction, if any, should be recognised as the party for the purposes of the Symbols Order.

The interim decision has therefore altered the electoral identity under which both factions will contest the immediate bypolls, while leaving the larger dispute over the party’s name and symbol unresolved.

The Mamata Banerjee camp has rejected the interim order, while the rival camp has said it will abide by the arrangement and expressed confidence that it will eventually secure the original party name and symbol.

With PTI inputs