The Election Commission of India informed the Bombay High Court on Monday that it would allot ‘whistle’ symbol to Hitendra Thakur-led Bahujan Vikas Aghadi (BVA) for the upcoming Maharashtra assembly polls following requisite guidelines.The ECI in January this year allotted the ‘whistle’ symbol to the Janata Dal (United). A BVA candidate contested the 2024 general polls on the ‘whistle’ symbol from Maharashtra’s Palghar Lok Sabha seat as the JD(U) did not have a candidate.
During the hearing before the court, the ECI submitted a letter received from the JD(U) informing the poll body about its decision to not contest the November 20 Maharashtra assembly elections. Thus, the party was surrendering the ‘whistle’ symbol allotted to it by virtue of an order dated January 30, 2024, the JD(U) said in the letter.
The ECI told the court that since the petitioner (BVA) had applied for the ‘whistle’ symbol, the same would be allotted to the party “by following the procedure laid down in the requisite rules/guidelines”. Following the poll body’s submission, the bench disposed of BVA’s petition. BVA, founded in 2009 and led by Hitendra Thakur, was originally known as Vasai Vikas Aghadi and has been using the whistle symbol in 2009, 2014 and 2019 assembly elections. Its party workers are known to blow shrill whistles during poll campaigning. During 2019 Assembly polls, the State Election Commission had banned BVA workers from blowing whistles.