NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday granted four months’ time to the Election Commission of India to decide the party name and symbol dispute between two rival factions of the All India Trinamool Congress party.
The top court passed the order while hearing Mamata Banerjee’s plea challenging the ECI’s interim decision to freeze the name All India Trinamool Congress and its election symbol ‘Flowers & Grass’ amid the factional feud within the party.
The court directed both the parties to file their response within four weeks and asked the ECI to decide the dispute within three months. Thus, effectively a four-month timeline has been fixed to decide the dispute.
The Election Commission on September 18 ordered a freeze on the name and election symbol of Trinamool Congress and directed the two rival factions to select new names and symbols until the dispute is resolved. The poll body’s decision came 10 days after it announced the bypolls for which both the factions, led by Mamata Banerjee and Arup Roy, nominated candidates. The Banerjee-led faction is now contesting the election on a footballer symbol and the rebel camp on an envelope symbol.
The petition contends that the Election Commission’s action is without legal basis and is based on an erroneous and baseless representation dated June 22, 2026, submitted by Ritabrata Banerjee. It further states that the EC’s order freezing the AITC’s symbol is unlawful and contrary to the democratic principles enshrined in the Constitution.
The plea states that it raises a substantial question of law, namely, whether an interim order can be passed by the ECI after the announcement of the bye-elections, disturbing the status quo and causing prejudice to petitioner. In her plea filed in the apex court, Banerjee has made the Election Commission and Ritabrata Banerjee, Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, as party respondents.
The Election Commission had allotted separate names and symbols to the two rival factions following its interim decision to bar both groups from using the ‘All India Trinamool Congress’ name and its reserved symbol pending a substantive determination of the dispute. In its interim order, the poll panel, after hearing leaders of the two factions led by Banerjee and Arup Roy, said the matter requires substantive determination by the poll body under provisions of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order 1968.
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