'Torch must not resemble our broom'

AAP wants EC to tweak battery torch symbol

The Aam Aadmi Party has approached the Election Commission for getting a similar-looking election symbol tweaked. 

The party leaders say that the battery torch symbol, which was used in 15 constituencies during the Delhi Assembly election, may have cost the party at least two seats. 

In order to avoid confusion in the Lok Sabha polls AAP has made a plea to the Election Commission, urging to narrow the torch beam. “This will help voters to distinguish it with AAP’s broom symbol,” said senior party leader Ashish Talwar.

In the two constituencies — Janakpuri and Kalkaji — where AAP lost to BJP, the winning margin was less than the number of votes cast for the independent candidates, who were contesting on the torch symbol. 

In Kalkaji, Dharmender Kumar had managed 3,092 votes contesting on the torch symbol. AAP’s Dharambir Singh lost to the BJP here by a margin of 2,044 votes. 

In Janakpuri, AAP candidate Rajesh Rishi lagged behind his BJP competitor by 2,644. Sanjay Puri, the independent whose election symbol too was the torch, had managed 4,332 votes here.

According to party’s findings, the independent candidates with torch symbol had managed more polls than those contesting without it. 

Talwar said the Election Commission has conceded to the party’s request. Therefore with the likely elimination of the symbol confusion, the party is confident to do better in the first-past-the-post system.