Congress backs Mamata as ECI freezes name and symbol of Trinamool Congress

Subscribed with another email? Logout and Login with that one. Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. File | Photo Credit: ANI The Congress party came out in support of former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee as the Election Commission of India froze the name and symbol of her party . Also Read | Defected MPs ‘ gaddar team’, TMC is led by Mamata: Saugata Roy After defecting from the Congress, Ms. Banerjee set up the Trinamool Congress with the symbol of grass and twin flowers about 28 years ago, in 1998. The Congress leader said that when an entire party can be stolen, it’s hardly surprising that the votes of millions of Indians can be stolen too. “Vote theft. Gandhi recalled that first it was Shiv Sena, then NCP, and now Trinamool Congress. “Every time, the same pattern—BJP and the Election Commission join forces to split a party. Congress general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal, in a social media post, condemned this move by the Election Commission and demanded that the ECI immediately restore the party symbol to Mamata Banerjee. “Freezing the AITC name and symbol - after a blatantly unconstitutional hijack by the BJP - is CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s late-night birthday gift to Modi ji. Observing that whoever opposes the BJP is dealt a fatal blow and their entire electoral existence is snatched away from them, the Congress leader said that the ECI has once again proven that it is nothing more than a puppet in the hands of the BJP - a tool to destroy democracy bit by bit.