Candidates not allotted party symbol: Trinamool Congress

New Delhi, Feb 6: The Trinamool Congress today claimed that about 100 of its candidates in the upcoming assembly polls were not allotted the 'flower and grass' symbol of the party and alleged harassment at the hands of Uttar Pradesh administration and election officials.

Despite assurances and sanctioning of the symbol by the Election Commission "nearly 100 of our nominated candidates were not allotted the party symbol. This is great injustice", Trinamool MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar said in a letter to Chief Election Commissioner S Y Qureshi.

This has prevented most of these candidates from being able to file nomination papers, she told PTI later.

The Lok Sabha MP alleged that she was herself "harassed" by armed policemen in Jaunpur and Sultanpur districts on separate occasions who "stopped me even after I identified myself" and removed the party flags from her car.

Ghosh Dastidar also said her party candidates were not being provided with security and were under attack when they visited various areas, including nomination centres.

She claimed that Trinamool candidate from Lucknow Cantonment assembly segment was asked by election officials whether she would like to refrain from contesting against political heavyweights in that constituency.

PTI