Morcha to use BJP symbol

TT, Siliguri, Sept. 5: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha has decided to contest the October 3 polls to the Siliguri Mahakuma Parishad on the BJP's symbol.

Two other parties, the Kamtapur Progressive Party and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, will also use the BJP's symbol.

"We held a meeting to discuss the Siliguri Mahakuma Parishad elections here today. Leaders of all our allies attended the meeting. It was decided that all candidates of the BJP and its allies would contest on our party's symbol," said Biswapriya Roychoudhury, a state general secretary of the BJP.

Shankar Adhikari, the president of the Morcha's Terai committee, said: "It has been decided that all candidates, irrespective of whether he or she is from the BJP or any of its allies, will contest on the BJP's symbol. However, there can be some candidates from the allies who may prefer to contest as Independents."

BJP sources said the decision was taken to avoid confusion among voters.

"It had been seen in earlier local polls that voters often get confused about who to vote for if each alliance partner has its own individual symbol. In such elections, alliance candidates change after every two-three booths. So, it will be easier if all the allies contest on a common symbol," a BJP leader said.

"In the October 3 elections, each voter will cast three votes - at the panchayat, panchayat samiti and Siliguri Mahakuma Parishad levels. So if candidates from different alliance partners contest at the three levels on separate symbols, voters will be confused. To avoid this, we have decided to contest on a single symbol," the leader added.

Shared from The Telegraph by KalimNews in Kalimpong News at  http://kalimpongonlinenews.blogspot.in/2015/09/morcha-to-use-bjp-symbol.htmland http://kalimpongnews.net/2015/09/06/morcha-bjp-symbol/