Team Thackeray Writes To Election Body: "Bias" In Party Names, Symbols

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena group has written a 12-point letter to the Election Commission alleging bias in favour of the rival Eknath Shinde camp in deciding party symbol and names.

Team Thackeray alleged that certain actions - uploading names and symbols on the website and deleting them, advancing deadlines to submit documents - by the Election Commission gave a wide margin to the rival Team Shinde to choose a name and symbol of their choice.

Team Thackeray, in the letter, said the Election Commission shared "privileged communication" by uploading Team Thackeray's choice of names and symbols on the election body's website "possibly even before [Team Shinde] had submitted his own list". This allowed Team Shinde to copy the choices that Team Thackeray had suggested, the letter alleged.

Mr Thackeray's faction is now called Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray and its symbol is the flaming torch. Mr Shinde's group is called Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena, and carries the symbol of a shield and two swords.

"Further, to the surprise of the respondent [Team Thackeray], it was seen that the Hon'ble Commission thereafter deleted this letter from its website. Needless to say, no letter of the petitioner [Team Shinde] stating his preference of symbols and names was ever uploaded on the website," Team Thackeray said in the letter.

The letter alleged Team Shinde "very tellingly" gave the same first choice of name, and the same first and second choice of symbol as Team Thackeray's, "effectively precluding the respondent [Team Thackeray] from being allotted his first choice of name and the first and second choice of symbol."

Team Thackeray, in a markedly serious allegation, said the letter allocating the symbol and name for them was uploaded on the election body's website without an image of the symbol.

But the letter saying so for Team Shinde contained a big image of the symbol "under which the petitioner [Team Shinde] and his group would be contesting the by-
elections. The same is again giving an unfair advantage to the petitioner", Team Thackeray said.

The Sena implosion began in June when Mr Shinde led 48 MLAs in a BJP-backed coup against then Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, bringing down his coalition government with the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party. Mr Shinde then formed a new government with the BJP.

Mr Thackeray is fighting to keep the legacy of the party founded by his father, Balasaheb Thackeray.