Decision on AIADMK’s symbol in four weeks: ECI to Madras HC
Chennai (The Uttam Hindu): The Election Commission of India (ECI) informed the Madras High Court that it would take a decision within four weeks on a petition seeking not to allocate the ‘Two Leaves’ symbol to candidates proposed by AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS). S. Surya Moorthi, a resident of Dindigul and a self-proclaimed member of the AIADMK had filed a petition urging the court to prevent the allocation of the party’s iconic symbol to the faction led by EPS.
A division bench of Justices R. Subramanian and C. Kumarappan on Wednesday (December 4) recorded the submission of ECI standing counsel Niranjan Rajagopalan. The counsel informed the court that the ECI had issued a notice to the AIADMK, which had already submitted its response. The commission assured the court that it would make a decision after considering all representations within four weeks.
The court directed the ECI to hear all concerned parties before arriving at a conclusion. This directive followed a plea by senior counsel P.H. Arvindh Pandian, representing expelled AIADMK leader O. Panneerselvam (OPS), who argued that no notice had been issued to his client despite his critical role in the party’s leadership dispute. The High Court observed that several civil suits had been filed challenging the AIADMK’s general council resolutions and its conduct. While interim applications had been disposed of, related orders were subsequently addressed by the Supreme Court. The ‘Two Leaves’ symbol was frozen by the ECI in March 2017 after a power struggle erupted within the AIADMK following the demise of former Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa in December 2016. In November 2017, the symbol was allocated jointly to Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) and O. Panneerselvam (OPS).
However, in March 2023, the AIADMK announced that EPS had been elected unopposed as its general secretary after the Madras High Court rejected interim applications filed by expelled leaders, including OPS, P.H. Manoj Pandian, R. Vaithilingam, and J.C.D. Prabhakar. The current writ petition was filed ahead of the 2024 Parliamentary elections. The ECI has instructed its counsel to issue notices and seek replies from the concerned parties. The Madras High Court, while disposing of the petition, emphasised that the ECI must ensure fairness by hearing all stakeholders before making a final decision on the ‘Two Leaves’ symbol allocation.
