Story perspectives

Election Commission Freezes Trinamool Name and Symbol for By-Polls

By Drooid · Sep 20, 2026, 10:03 AM UTC · How we work

Center

Banerjee challenges EC freeze

On 18 September 2026 the Election Commission of India froze the All India Trinamool Congress name and its ‘flowers-and-grass’ symbol for the upcoming West Bengal by-polls.
The coverage highlights the EC’s authority under Paragraph 15 of the 1968 Election Symbols (Reservation & Allotment) Order and details each faction’s chosen name and symbol.
Mamata Banerjee petitioned the Supreme Court for an urgent hearing on the EC’s freeze.

Right

Trinamool comeback vow

On 18 September 2026 Election Commission of India froze All India Trinamool Congress name and its ‘flowers-and-grass’ symbol for the October 6 West Bengal by-polls.
Mamata Banerjee called the freeze a politically motivated BJP vendetta and vowed not to bow, pledging her faction’s comeback.
The commission gave Banerjee’s faction the ‘Mamata All India Trinamool Congress’ name and football-player symbol.
Banerjee withdrew her Nandigram and Rejinagar candidates and endorsed the Congress candidate in Nandigram.

Blindspot

The Election Commission acted under Paragraph 15 of the Election Symbols (Reservation & Allotment) Order 1968 when it froze the All India Trinamool Congress name and its “flowers-and-grass” symbol.
Within this story's sources, this legal-basis detail appears mainly in Center-leaning coverage and receives less attention in Right-leaning coverage.

History

Historical Context

After the 1988 amendment legalised electronic voting, the Election Commission piloted EVMs in 25 constituencies in 1998 and deployed them nationwide for the 2004 Lok Sabha election, covering all 543 seats. That institutional precedent enabled the 18 September 2026 order freezing the All India Trinamool Congress name and its “flowers-and-grass” symbol under the 1968 Election Symbols Order, shaping today’s party-competition battles in West Bengal.

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Banerjee challenges EC freeze

On 18 September 2026 the Election Commission of India froze the All India Trinamool Congress name and its ‘flowers-and-grass’ symbol for the upcoming West Bengal by-polls.
The coverage highlights the EC’s authority under Paragraph 15 of the 1968 Election Symbols (Reservation & Allotment) Order and details each faction’s chosen name and symbol.
Mamata Banerjee petitioned the Supreme Court for an urgent hearing on the EC’s freeze.

1 / 4