The Delhi high court has allowed the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) to withdraw its petition challenging the allotment of election symbol 'bucket' to the Progressive Party for the Delhi assembly elections and make a fresh representation before the Election Commission (EC).
A bench of justice Sudershan Misra allowed the SAD (whose own symbol is 'scales') and its Delhi unit president Manjit Singh GK to withdraw the petition and "make a representation before the EC in respect of all their grievances."
The SAD had in the petition said it had contested the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) elections earlier this year on the symbol 'bucket' and the EC's October 18 notification-cum-symbol order granting the symbol to some other party would create confusion among Sikh voters.
The SAD's counsel, Abinash Mishra, said he would withdraw the petition and make a fresh representation before the EC with all legal issues, including the manner in which common symbols are introduced for states and union territories, and invitation of comments from registered political parties before introducing any fresh election symbol.
The party had said it is "going to contest the Delhi assembly elections in alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party and the notification-cum-symbol order dated October 18 is going to seriously prejudice the results of the Delhi assembly elections because the election symbol of bucket, granted to Respondent No. 2 (Progressive Party)… is going to create great confusion in the minds of Sikh voters who voted for the SAD on the same symbol during the elections for the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee."
{{/usCountry}}The party had said it is "going to contest the Delhi assembly elections in alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party and the notification-cum-symbol order dated October 18 is going to seriously prejudice the results of the Delhi assembly elections because the election symbol of bucket, granted to Respondent No. 2 (Progressive Party)… is going to create great confusion in the minds of Sikh voters who voted for the SAD on the same symbol during the elections for the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee."
{{/usCountry}}The SAD had in its petition sought freezing of the symbol 'bucket' and a direction to the EC to allot some other symbol to the Progressive Party out of the remaining symbols for the Delhi assembly polls.