[While India’s seven national parties and 64 state parties have fixed symbols, the Election Commission also has a pool of “free” symbols that can be used by thousands of smaller, lesser-known organizations.]
By
Niha Masih
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A
worker assembles an Indian National Congress party ribbon at the Sadar Bazaar
market
in New Delhi. (Ruhani Kaur/Bloomberg News)
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NEW
DELHI — Nearly 900 million
Indians are eligible to vote in national elections that start Thursday, an
exercise so big that it will take six weeks to complete.
The contest involves many political parties,
each with a symbol — and the symbols themselves have become a unique feature of
Indian democracy.
When India held its first national election
in 1951-52, almost 3 of 4 voters were illiterate. To help them identify the
party of their choice, visual symbols were allotted to parties and candidates.
While literacy levels have increased dramatically since, the abiding appeal of
party symbols has not faded.
Until recently, India’s voting machines
featured only the candidate’s name and party symbol. This time, the candidate’s
photo will also appear on the machine beside the symbol.
While India’s seven national parties and 64
state parties have fixed symbols, the Election Commission also has a pool of
“free” symbols that can be used by thousands of smaller, lesser-known
organizations.
Here’s a look at some of the symbols
competing for voters’ attention:
Lotus
India’s national flower, the lotus, is the
symbol of the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, or BJP. The
lotus is associated with the Hindu goddess of knowledge and symbolizes the
party’s link to Hinduism and its traditions.
Hand
The palm of a hand is the only body part in
use as a party symbol. The Indian National Congress, which led India’s struggle
for independence and now serves as the main opposition party, considers the
hand a symbol of strength and unity.
Elephant
The elephant is the symbol of the Bahujan
Samaj Party, which draws its strength from the Dalit community, formerly known
as “untouchables.” It is one of the few parties to have an animal symbol. (The
use of such symbols was largely discontinued after protests from animal rights
groups.)
Bicycle
The bicycle — a popular mode of transport for
the masses — is a popular political symbol. Three regional parties proudly use
the bicycle as their symbol, including the Samajwadi Party, a powerful player
in Uttar Pradesh, India’s largest state and home to more than 100 million
voters.
Ears
of Corn and Sickle
The symbol of the Communist Party of India
draws on classic imagery representing farmers and peasants, but it should not
be confused with a similar symbol used by the Communist Party of India
(Marxist), which uses a hammer, sickle and star.
Banana
All Jharkhand Students Union, a regional
party in central India, has a banana as its symbol. No one is quite sure why.
Broom
One of India’s newest parties, the Common Man
Party, rode to victory in Delhi’s state government on an anti-corruption
platform. Its symbol — a broom — represents the party’s promise to sweep out
corruption.
Ceiling
fan
Household objects are often used as symbols
by parties to position themselves as representing the common man. A ceiling fan
is the symbol of Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party, in southern India.
Car
Other parties use symbols like the car — a
nod to modernization and rising aspirations — to pull in voters. The car is the
symbol of Telangana Rashtriya Samiti, a regional party in the south that zoomed
to power a second time last year.
Free
symbols: Bat, batsman, cutting pliers, drill machine, frying pan, nailcutter,
noodles, pen nib with rays, plate stand
Lesser-known parties have to apply for their
symbol each election, and there are 198 wonderful and bizarre objects to choose
from on the “free symbols” list. A bat and a batsman reflecting India’s passion
for cricket seem like good choices. But it’s unclear how a party would swing
votes its direction by choosing pliers or a drill machine.
A long list of food items — perhaps inserted
by a hungry election official? — feature in the free symbols list (noodle bowl,
cauliflower, peanuts, green chili).
There are also some hard-to-fathom choices
like a dish rack with three plates in it and a pen nib radiating rays of ink.
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