HC quashes EC's order rejecting TMC's plea for cycle symbol

The Madras High Court Wednesday quashed a March 4, 2016 order of the Election Commission rejecting a request of the Tamil Manila Congress (TMC) headed by former union minister G K Vasan for allotment of bi-cycle symbol to it.

Passing the order, Justice T Raja remitted the matter back to the EC and directed the TMC to give a fresh representation.

The commission should consider the matter afresh and pass orders within eight weeks, he said.

The Tamil Manila Congress was floated by veteran Congress leader G K Moopanar in 1996. The EC had then recognised it as a state party and allotted the bi-cycle symbol.

After the demise of Moopanar in 2001, Vasan took over as the party president.

It later merged with parent party Congress, but again Vasan and his supporters broke away in 2014 and revived the TMC.

However, despite repeated applications for allotment of bicycle symbol, the EC rejected it.

Hence the party filed the present petition.