MIM’s ‘kite’ flies away, unrecognised registered party gets symbol instead

Hyderabad: The MIM has landed in trouble before the start of electioneering by losing the kite, its popular poll symbol, for the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.

The kite has been registered to an unrecognised party, Samaikhyandhra Parirakshana Samithi. The kite is a free symbol, and is not locked for any political party, and the EC calls for applications for common symbols.

Though the MIM claims to be a national party, it did not get the status of a recognised political party even at the state level because it did not meet the requirement of securing six per cent of the total valid votes polls in the last general election, or winning nine Assembly seats.

MIM chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi met Chief Electo-ral Officer Bhanwarlal two days ago and urged the latter to allot the kite symbol to his party. He is said to have pointed out that his party had won seven Assembly seats and a Lok Sabha seat in 2009.

In the forthcoming elections, the MIM expects to field more candidates than the other party, Mr Owaisi reportedly said. Sources said that the MIM leader also argued that the SPS was a non-serious party and existed only on paper.

The EC had provided an opportunity for all unrecognised parties to apply for common symbols under Section 10B of the poll symbols order. The YSRC had responded immediately and obtained ‘ceiling fan’ as the common symbol.

The MIM realised that it had lost the kite when the SPS announced its symbol and list of candidates. To make matters worse, the SPS has nominated a candidate, Dr Mir Akbar Ali Khan, for the Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat, from where Mr Owaisi will seek re-election.

However, it is not uncommon for the MIM to contest on different symbols like the boat, ladder, watch and scales. Mr Owaisi was not available for comment.