The Election Commission of India on Saturday disallowed the use of Lok Janshakti Party’s (LJP) name and its symbol “bungalow” ahead of the bypolls in Bihar owing to a dispute between the two factions led by MP Chirag Paswan and his uncle and Union minister Pashupati Paras.

The EC cited Para 15 of Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968, which says: “When the Commission is satisfied on information in its possession that there are rival sections or groups of a recognised political party each of whom claims to be that party the Commission may, after taking into account all the available facts and circumstances of the case and hearing such representatives of the sections or groups and other persons as desire to be heard decide that one such rival section or group or none of such rival sections or groups is that recognised political party and the decision of the Commission shall be binding on all such rival sections or groups.”

Bypolls in Tarapur and Kusheshwar Asthan Assembly seats are scheduled to be held on October 30.

“The time frame needed to ensure the above due process for the Commission to reach a finding under Para 15 is incongruous to the time line being invoked by the 2 groups in view of the announcement of September 28, 2021 of the ECI to conduct bye-polls…,” the EC added.

Both the factions have claimed exclusive use of the party name and symbol.

In the recent past, a dispute over the symbol of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam took four years to resolve with lakhs of affidavits being submitted to the EC by the office-bearers of all the factions. The matter went to the Supreme Court and was resolved only in May this year.

“Both the groups shall be known by such names as they may choose for their respective groups, including, if they so desire, linkage with their parent party ‘Lok Janshakti Party’,” the EC said in its order.

The factions have to submit their new names and choice of symbols from the list of free symbols by October 4. They will also have to submit documents to back their claim on the party by November 5.

The LJP had split in June after five of the party’s six MPs elbowed out Chirag. The BJP recognised the faction led by Paras and made him a minister.

Despite being in the NDA, the LJP under Chirag had contested against candidates of ruling ally Janata Dal (United) in the 2020 Bihar polls.