‘Give common symbol, to Dhinakaran faction’

The Delhi high court on Friday directed the Election Commission to allot a common symbol, preferably that of ‘pressure cooker’, and a name to the AIADMK (Amma) faction led by T T V Dhinakaran.

Justice Rekha Palli asked the poll panel to pass an appropriate order allotting the symbol and name, as chosen by the Dhinakaran-VK Sasikala faction, within three weeks after giving them a hearing.

The order came on a plea by Dhinakaran in his main petition challenging an EC order , which had allotted the ‘two leaves’ symbol to the group headed by Tamil Nadu chief minister E Palaniswami and his deputy O Panneerselvam who opposed grant of relief in the matter.

The interim plea had sought the allocation of a name and symbol till the pendency of the main petition, claiming that otherwise the poll panel might declare it as a separate party.

Dhinakaran had asked for the pressure cooker symbol as under it he had won the RK Nagar by-election last year.

The Palaniswami-Panneerselvam group had opposed Dhinakaran’s plea on several grounds, including that his faction has to register itself as a separate party to get a name and symbol and that the appropriate forum for the matter was the Madras HC.

Rejecting their contentions, the court said that Dhinakaran’s faction cannot be compelled to register as a new party and then apply for a symbol as then his plea laying claim to the twoleaves symbol would become a fait accompli.

NEW DELHI: