ECI gives Mamata, Ritabrata more time to submit documents in Trinamool symbol dispute
The Election Commission of India has granted Mamata Banerjee and Ritabrata Banerjee an extension to submit documents regarding the Trinamool Congress party symbol dispute. The commission may freeze the symbol ahead of the upcoming by-elections if the ownership remains contested.
Why it matters
The outcome of this dispute could significantly impact the political landscape in West Bengal and the legitimacy of candidates in the upcoming bypolls.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has given more time to both former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly Ritabrata Banerjee to submit additional documents, if needed, in support of their claims to the Trinamool Congress’s election symbol. The documents must be submitted by 3 p.m. on September 16.
Coincidentally, the nomination process for the October 6 Assembly bypolls in Nandigram and Rejinagar also closes on the same day.
Both sides have said they will field candidates in the upcoming by-elections under the Trinamool symbol, the ‘ joda ghaash phool’ (twin grass flowers). Going by the precedent set in the Shiv Sena case, sources said the ECI is likely to freeze the party symbol temporarily.
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