EC decision on AIADMK poll symbol on March 22

 The Election Commission will decide on March 22 which faction of the AIADMK will get its poll symbol 'twin leaf'.

The Commission has called both the V K Sasikala and the O Panneerselvam factions for a hearing on March 22 to decide on the symbol issue, sources in the poll watchdog said here. Both the factions want to contest the April 12 R K Nagar assembly bypoll on the AIADMK symbol and have fielded their respective candidates. March 23 is the last date of filing nominations for the byelection.

In the ongoing tug of war for the party symbol, the Panneerselvam camp today submitted a petition to the EC requesting allotment of the twin-leaf to it. The move comes just a day after a delegation from the Sasikala camp led by party leader and Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai submitted a memorandum to the poll panel requesting "not to entertain" the dissenting cadres, who have staked claim to the AIADMK symbol.

The Commission has sought supporting documents from the Panneerselvam camp before March 20. The Sasikala camp was asked to file its response also by March 20. But it sought time till March 22, which the EC rejected.
In an advisory sent to it, the Commission said the response of the Sasikala camp should come by March 21 evening. The OPS camp had yesterday announced its candidate E Madhusudhanan, a veteran leader and AIADMK loyalist, for the bypoll in R K Nagar, which was represented by late J Jayalalithaa.

T T V Dinakaran, AIADMK Deputy General Secretary and nephew of Sasikala is the candidate of the other camp.