ORDER :

D. Bharatha Chakravarthy, J.

(Prayer: Writ Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, praying to issue a Writ of Mandamus, to direct the 1st respondent to consider the representation of the petitioner dated 27.09.2023 and cancel the Lotus symbol allotted to Bharatiya Janata Party and pass such further or other order.)

1. This is a Public Interest Litigation filed by the petitioner, who claims to be the Founder-President of a political party viz., Ahimsa Socialist Party, bearing Registration No.56/102/2016-17/PPS-I.

2. It is the case of the petitioner that the 2nd respondent, viz., the Bharatiya Janata Party is allotted with the Lotus symbol. The lotus is the national flower of India. As per Section 5 of the Election Symbols (Reservation & Allotment) Order, 1968 some symbols are exclusively allotted for the recognized political parties and there are free symbols that are available to be allocated to unrecognized parties and independent candidates. It is unjust to allot the national flower to a political party, as the Lotus symbol represents the nation. The symbol is also a sacred religious symbol, therefore, it cannot be included in the list of symbols. Thus,