Giving credence to legislative majority test amount to approving split in political party: SC

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday said giving credence to 'legislative majority test' to recognise breakaway group as real political party would amount to approving split in the party which has been removed to check defections under the Tenth Schedule.

The court allowed Ajit Pawar group of the Nationalist Congress Party to use 'Clock' symbol and Sharad Pawar group 'a man blowing trumpet as election symbols' in ensuing Parliamentary and Assembly polls.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and K V Vishwanathan allowed the Ajit Pawar group to use the name and symbol of the party, while orally expressing concern over the current trend of defection in political parties being recognised as the real party by the Election Commission.

"When the Election Commission is recognising a faction only on basis of legislative strength and not organisational strength, is it not recognising a split, which is no longer approved under the Tenth Schedule. That way, you can engineer defections and claim the party symbol. Will it be not mockery of voters," the bench said.

Senior advocate A M Singhvi for Sharad Pawar group questioned the Election Commission's decision to recognise Ajit Pawar group as the real party.

Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi for Ajit Pawar group said there was no question of defection as the EC recognised Ajit's group as the official NCP.

The court directed the Ajit Pawar group to make a public declaration that the use of clock symbol was subject to outcome of the proceedings.

It also ordered that the symbol of man blowing trumpet would be a reserved symbol for Sharad Pawar group in Parliamentary and state Assembly elections. The court allowed Sharad Pawar to use Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Chandra Pawar) as name of his party.

In interim orders, the court also directed the undertaking filed by the Ajit Pawar group against use of Sharad Pawar's name and photo in posters would apply not only in Maharashtra but in other States as well.

On March 14, the court had asked the Ajit Pawar group of Nationalist Congress Party as to why it was keen to use photo of Sharad Pawar in posters in the ensuing Lok Sabha elections after parting ways with the founder of the party.

Sharad Pawar had challenged the Election Commission's decision of February 6, recognising the group by Ajit Pawar as the NCP and awarding it party symbol of 'Clock'.

Sharad Pawar is uncle of Ajit Pawar and has founded the NCP.

Ajit Pawar and eight other legislators of the NCP joined Maharashtra’s ruling coalition of Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena and BJP in July, 2023.