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Poll panel turns down JD-S plea on AIR, DD timings

The Election Commission has turned down a Janata Dal-Secular plea to cancel the facility of free air time on Doordarshan and All India Radio to Samata Party and Lok Shakti but directed that their leaders using the free air time should not be contesting on any other party ticket.

The Janata Dal-S headed by former prime minister H D Deve Gowda had asked for the withdrawal of free air time facility to Samata and Lok Shakti on the ground that these two parties had joined with the Janata Dal-United led by Sharad Yadav and would be contesting the coming Lok Sabha and assembly polls under its banner and poll symbol 'Arrow'.

Turning down the Janata Dal-S petition, the Election Commission noted in its order issued today that the Lok Shakti and Samata Party had stated in their replies to the JD-S plea that they continued to exist as separate parties and had not formally merged with the JD-U.

''The commission has decided that the time allotted to these parties for their political telecasts/broadcasts will continue to remain allotted to them, so long as they continue to exist as separate recognised political parties under the Election Symbols Order, 1968.''

The commission, however, said that the time allotted to these two parties shall be utilised by their office bearers and leaders. If any of their leader or office-bearer contests the coming elections in any state or Union territory on the ticket of a party other than his own party, such a person shall not be permitted to utilise any time over DD/AIR allocated to the Samata or the Lok Shakti.

The contestant, however, will be free to use the time allotted to the party on whose ticket he was contesting the elections, it added. In the order communicated to the Samata Party, the Lok Shakti and the Janata Dal-U, commission secretary K R Prasad said that the EC directive should be strictly observed by all of them.

While the JD-S and JD-U have been allotted fifty per cent of the time each allocated to the original Janata Dal as a recognised national party, the Samata Party and Lok Shakti have been given time as recognised state parties.

UNI

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