Mumbai: State election commission has freezed 'Trumpet' and 'Turah' Symbol. Now, independent candidates cannot use these symbols in any further elections. It is considered as a a big relief to NCP Sharad Chandra Pawar party. Because it had to bear loss during last Loksabha election. The election commission accepted the request of NCP SP to restrain from using these symbols.
Suresh Kakani, Secretary of State Election commission passed order pertaining to it. After Lok Sabha election, NCP SP leaders had claimed that voters of Maharashtra got confused between the poll symbols of NCP SP and an independent candidate, which looked similar. The party also said that similar symbols reduced their margin in multiple seats in the recently held Lok Sabha elections.
The Election Commission allocated the 'man blowing turah', symbol to the Sharad Pawar faction, after the party split in July last year. Later, an election symbol named 'Pipani' (trumpet) was allocated to independent candidates, which looked similar to the NCP SP election symbol.
The party had claimed that they lost the Satara Lok Sabha seat due to the similar-looking symbols, leading to voter confusion. In the Satara constituency, Sanjay Gade, an independent candidate who was contesting with the Pipani symbol, secured 37,062 votes, whereas NCP SP candidate Shashikant Shinde lost to BJP’s Udayanraje Bhosale by a margin of 32,771 votes.
Similarly, allotting identical symbols reduced margins in many seats, where independent candidates with the Pipani symbol secured 40,000 to 50,000 votes, the party had claimed.
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