J&K HC Directs EC to Allocate Common Symbol to ‘Ekam Sanatan Bharat Dal’ for Upcoming Elections

The High Court of Jammu Kashmir and Ladakh has directed the Election Commission to assign a unified symbol to all candidates representing the ‘Ekam Sanatan Bharat Dal’ in the upcoming elections in four states scheduled for November this year.

A bench of Justice Rajesh Sekhri said the interim order shall “be subject to objections and final outcome”.

While hearing a petition filed through advocate Ankur Sharma on behalf of the petitioner ‘IkkJutt Jammu,’ the court has issued notice to the Election Commission and other respondents, requesting their response within a four-week period.

The petitioner, asserting its status as a registered political party, has maintained that it altered its name from ‘IkkJutt Jammu’ to ‘Ekam Sanatan Bharat Dal’ in accordance with the regulations. The party has alleged that it approached the Election Commission seeking a common symbol allocation for the upcoming assembly elections in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Telangana, but received no response from the Election Commission.

“In the meantime, respondents are directed to accept the nomination paper and Form B of the petitioner party in the name of “Ekam Sanatan Bharat Dal,” the judge stated.

Justice Sekhri has further ordered the allocation of a shared symbol, enabling the petitioner party to participate in the upcoming legislative assembly elections in the four states. However, he has emphasized that this order is provisional and contingent upon objections and the final outcome.

The court has observed that, despite adhering to all the necessary legal requirements, the Election Commission has not taken any action in response to the party’s name change and symbol allocation request.

The next hearing is scheduled for December 11, 2023.