Maharashtra Assembly election: Ajit Pawar's NCP can use clock symbol, says SC

The Supreme Court SC on Thursday October 24 directed Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister CM Ajit Pawar to use the clock symbol in its publicity material in the upcoming Maharashtra assembly election However his Nationalist Congress Party NCP will have to put a disclaimer stating that the matter over the symbol was subjudice before SC reported news agency PTIJustices Surya Kant Dipankar Datta and Ujjal Bhuyan passed the order on a plea filed by the rival NCPSharadchandra Pawar SP as it issued a notice to the Deputy CMled partyAccording to PTI the top court on March 19 and April 4 had directed NCP to issue a public notice in the newspapers in English Hindi and Marathi editions notifying that the allocation of the clock symbol was subjudice The apex court had further said the party was permitted to use the symbol subject to the cases final outcomeDuring the proceedings on Thursday the bench took note of the submissions of senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi who appeared for NCP SP Singhvi submitted that the rival faction of the Deputy CM should be restrained from using the clock symbol as it did not follow the usage of the disclaimer in its campaign materials and misled votersThey have been blatantly not using the disclaimer They want to piggyback on me Nobody should enjoy the goodwill of the symbol which is subjudice submitted SinghviThe top court then directed the Deputy CM to file a fresh undertaking over its March 19 and April 4 directions to issue a public notice NCPs clock symbol is subjudice was being meticulously complied with even during the process of the Maharashtra Assembly election reported PTISupreme Court to hear the matter on November 6File a fresh undertaking as well that you have not violated our directions in the past and till the end of elections If there is any violation we will take note of it We expect both sides to comply with our directions Please dont create an embarrassing situation the bench saidSinghvi said the Deputy CMs party should be allocated a new symbol for the Maharashtra Assembly electionHowever senior advocate Balbir Singh appearing for him opposed Singhvis submissions and said all pamphlets and campaign materials contained the disclaimers as directed by the apex courtThey are showing false documents We have given disclaimers in our publicity material They came up with the same allegations during the Lok Sabha polls which was rejected I am willing to file all documents and pamphlets Singh saidThe matter has now been posted for hearing on November 6 The Maharashtra Assembly election will be held on November 20Pawar senior moved the apex court against a February 6 order of the Election Commission of India ECI recognising his nephewled faction as the real NCPElection Commission allotted clock symbol to Ajit Pawar factionECI had allotted NCPs clock symbol to the group led by the Deputy CM NCP founded by Pawar senior had the clock as its election symbol before its splitOn March 19 the top court allowed the veteran politicians faction to use Nationalist Congress PartySharadchandra Pawar NCPSP as its name along with the symbol of a man blowing turha a kind of a trumpet ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in the countryIt had passed the order on a plea by NCPSP seeking to restrain the Deputy CMs faction from using the clock symbol for the polls as allotted by ECI on the ground that it was disrupting the level playing fieldThe top court had observed that the name and photographs of Pawar senior could not be used by NCP for political gainsOn February 19 the court directed for the continuation of the ECI order allotting Nationalist Congress PartySharadchandra Pawar as the party name for the veteran politicians factionFour days prior to the courts order Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar had held that the faction led by the Deputy CM was the real NCP and said the antidefection provisions in the Constitution could not be used to stifle internal dissentPawar senior had founded NCP with former Lok Sabha speaker Purno Sangma and Tariq Anwar in 1999 after their expulsion from the CongressLast year in July his nephew had walked away with a majority of NCP Members of Legislative Assembly MLAs and supported the Bharatiya Janata Party BJPShiv Sena government led by Eknath ShindeWith PTI inputs