Express News Service
CHANDIGARH: The Sanyukt Samaj Manch has asked the Election Commission of India to allot a common poll symbol to all the independent candidates fighting under its banner.
Prem Singh Bhangu, SSM’s screening committee member, told TMS, “The SSM has today (Thursday) given representation to the Chief Electoral Officer of Punjab asking to allot a common symbol to all 104 candidates of the manch who are fighting the election as independents…We have given three preferences — cot, pot and scissors.”
Sources said the allotment of symbols will be done on February 3 after withdrawal of nomination papers. The SSM decided to field its candidates as Independents after the outfit failed to get itself registered as a political party even after the Election Commission of India had given approval for the same.
Prominent farmer leader and the head of SSM Balbir Singh Rajewal filed his nomination papers on Tuesday from Samrala seat in Ludhiana. The SSM also accused the Aam Aadmi Party and the BJP of sabotaging its registration as a political party.
EC okayed SSM plea
On February 1, the EC had approved SSM’s application for getting recog-nition as a political party and asked it to put out a public notice in newspapers and wait for a 30-day period. Interestingly, it was the last day of filing nominations for the Assembly polls in Punjab.
