Madras HC seeks election commission's counter to plea challenging amendment in Representation of the People Act

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court directed the election commission of India (ECI) to file a counter to the petition challenging the amendment of Representation of the People Act 1951 made in 1975 regarding allotting election symbols.

The first division bench of acting Chief Justice R Mahadevan and Justice Mohammed Shaffiq heard a public interest litigation moved by advocate ML Ravi challenging the constitutional validity of provision 123 (3) of Representation of the People (RP) Act introduced in 1975.

The petitioner contended that the proviso defeats the very purpose of section 123 of the RP act which said that bribery, undue influence and use of religious or national symbols as corrupt electoral practices.

However, the 123 (3) proviso excluded ECI from allocating such symbols, as no symbol allotted under this RP Act to a candidate shall be deemed to be a religious symbol or a national symbol, said the petitioner.

The Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968, does not permit a political party to propose a symbol that has any religious or communal connotation or depicts any nord or animal, said the petitioner.

In such a case, how can ECI allot symbols with religious and national values for elections, the petitioner wondered.

After the submission, the bench posted the matter after four weeks and directed the ECI to file a counter.