Mumbai: Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena faction has submitted three options to the Election Commission following freezing of symbol ‘Bow and Arrow’ by it. The alternate symbols suggested by Uddhav faction are trident, rising sun and mashaal (burning torch).
The Election Commission had on Saturday barred the Shiv Sena factions led by former chief minister Thackeray and present Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde from using the party name and its election symbol ‘bow & arrow’ in the Andheri East Assembly bypoll scheduled on November 3.
In an interim order over claims by the rival factions for control of the organisation, the commission asked them to suggest by Monday three different name and also as many free symbols for allocation to their respective groups.
Sources in Thackeray faction said that they have submitted three options as an alternative before the Election Commission – a trident, rising sun or a burning torch, also known as mashaal.
The Thackeray camp has also submitted some options for its official name in polls, said sources without naming the options.
The EC’s interim order on Saturday came on the Shinde faction’s request the EC to allocate the symbol to its faction in view of the approaching Andheri East assembly bypoll.
The bypoll to Andheri East Assembly seat in suburban Mumbai has been necessitated due to the death of incumbent Sena MLA Ramesh Latke.
The Congress and the NCP have decided to support Ramesh Latke’s wife Rujuta Latke, the candidate of the Thackeray faction of the Shiv Sena, their coalition partner in the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA).
Whereas, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), an ally of the Shinde faction, has decided to field Murji Patel, a corporator in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.