AISF Plans Legal Action Against Election Commissions Symbol Allocation Decision
The AISF is contemplating legal action after the Election Commission allocated its symbol to a splinter group of the Trinamool Congress.
Kolkata, September 19 (Daily Kiran) : The All India Secular Front (AISF) is considering taking legal action against the Election Commission of India. This comes after the Commission allocated its registered election symbol, the ‘Envelope’, to a splinter faction of the Trinamool Congress led by Ritabrata Banerjee. The faction has been renamed the “Democratic Trinamool Congress.”
Naushad Siddiqui, the sole AISF MLA in the West Bengal Assembly, asserted that the ‘Envelope’ symbol had already been assigned to their party. He campaigned under this symbol in both the 2021 and 2026 Assembly elections from the Bhangar constituency in South 24 Parganas.
Siddiqui stated, “We renewed our claim for the ‘Envelope’ symbol on March 10, 2026. We selected it from the ‘Free Symbol’ options, and the Election Commission approved it. We have been contesting elections under this symbol since 2021. My question is, why has the same symbol been allotted to another political party in this situation? I believe there is a conspiracy to weaken our party.”
He further remarked, “I want to inform the BJP that their continuous use of the Election Commission to undermine the opposition will not end well for them.”
The AISF has already sent a letter to the Election Commission protesting the allocation of the ‘Envelope’ symbol to Banerjee’s faction. Siddiqui indicated that the party would approach the court if necessary.
On Friday, the Election Commission allocated the ‘Envelope’ symbol and the name ‘Democratic Trinamool Congress’ to Banerjee’s group. In contrast, the faction led by former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee received the name ‘Mamata All India Trinamool Congress’ and the symbol of a ‘Football Player.’ These new identities will be effective in the upcoming by-elections in the state.
Both factions received their new names and symbols following the Election Commission’s decision to freeze the original name ‘All India Trinamool Congress’ and the original symbol ‘Flower and Grass.’
The Trinamool Congress was established in 1998 after Mamata Banerjee split from Congress. Since its inception, the party has contested all elections under the name ‘All India Trinamool Congress’ and the symbol ‘Flower and Grass.’ It came to power in West Bengal in 2011 and has remained the ruling force in the state since then.
