NEW DELHI: A week after Election Commission (EC) ruled against Sharad Pawar and recognised Ajit Pawar‘s faction as the real Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the NCP founder moved SC challenging the decision.
EC had on Feb 6 decided the NCP symbol dispute in favour of Ajit Pawar, almost eight months after he broke away from the Sharad Pawar camp to join Shiv Sena-BJP govt with eight NCP MLAs.
EC had passed the order after evaluating the applicability of three tests-‘Test of Aims and Objectives of the Party Constitution’, ‘Test of Party Constitution’ and ‘Test of Majority’-to decide the dispute between the uncle and nephew. It ruled in favour of the Ajit Pawar faction as 57 affidavits were filed by NCP MPs, MLAs and MLCs in favour of his faction and only 28 were filed in support of Sharad Pawar.
Sharad Pawar in his petition has arraigned Ajit Pawar and EC. He alleged that the panel erred in passing order in favour of Ajit Pawar.
Expecting that Sharad Pawar would knock on the judiciary’s door, Ajit Pawar has already filed a caveat in the apex court through his lawyer, Abhikalp Pratap Singh. The Sharad Pawar camp is likely to plead for early hearing.
While allowing Ajit Pawar’s plea, ED had found that both groups were working outside the party constitution and that the organisational elections were not in order. It had also found serious inconsistencies in terms of timelines mentioned in the claim of the Sharad Pawar group to having organisational majority.
EC had also advised all political parties to adopt good disclosure practices related to organisational elections and internal party democracy. “Perhaps, the time has come for political parties to consider voluntary, wider public disclosures of party constitution; amendments thereof, if any; internal electoral steps such as the publication of electoral college, dates of elections, time and venue of elections of different tiers, candidates, complaint redressal mechanisms within their organisations, and list of elected office-bearers. Such disclosures on their websites shall keep the most valuable stakeholder of our electoral democracy, that is the electorate at large, duly informed,” EC had said.
EC had on Feb 6 decided the NCP symbol dispute in favour of Ajit Pawar, almost eight months after he broke away from the Sharad Pawar camp to join Shiv Sena-BJP govt with eight NCP MLAs.
EC had passed the order after evaluating the applicability of three tests-‘Test of Aims and Objectives of the Party Constitution’, ‘Test of Party Constitution’ and ‘Test of Majority’-to decide the dispute between the uncle and nephew. It ruled in favour of the Ajit Pawar faction as 57 affidavits were filed by NCP MPs, MLAs and MLCs in favour of his faction and only 28 were filed in support of Sharad Pawar.
Sharad Pawar in his petition has arraigned Ajit Pawar and EC. He alleged that the panel erred in passing order in favour of Ajit Pawar.
Expecting that Sharad Pawar would knock on the judiciary’s door, Ajit Pawar has already filed a caveat in the apex court through his lawyer, Abhikalp Pratap Singh. The Sharad Pawar camp is likely to plead for early hearing.
While allowing Ajit Pawar’s plea, ED had found that both groups were working outside the party constitution and that the organisational elections were not in order. It had also found serious inconsistencies in terms of timelines mentioned in the claim of the Sharad Pawar group to having organisational majority.
EC had also advised all political parties to adopt good disclosure practices related to organisational elections and internal party democracy. “Perhaps, the time has come for political parties to consider voluntary, wider public disclosures of party constitution; amendments thereof, if any; internal electoral steps such as the publication of electoral college, dates of elections, time and venue of elections of different tiers, candidates, complaint redressal mechanisms within their organisations, and list of elected office-bearers. Such disclosures on their websites shall keep the most valuable stakeholder of our electoral democracy, that is the electorate at large, duly informed,” EC had said.
