Shinde group is the real Shiv Sena, says poll body

Context:

• The Commission in exercise of its powers under Article 324 of the Constitution read with paras 15 and 18 of the symbols order 1968 orders that the party name Shiv Sena and the party symbol bow and arrow will be retained by the petitioner faction (Shinde).

Triple test procedure:

• ECI followed the procedure laid down in a 1971 Supreme Court judgment, which says such cases must be decided on the basis of a triple test. ECI found that the conclusion of the first two benchmarks were inconclusive.
• The first test — objectives of the party constitution — was deemed improper because the 2018 constitution of the Shiv Sena was found to be undemocratic and concentrated power in the hands of a few.
• The second test — that of the majority in the organizational body of the party — was also not considered because the poll panel found that neither side provided accurate details of the composition of internal bodies, and no determinable or satisfactory findings could be ascertained.
• Therefore, ECI relied on the third prong — the test of majority in the legislative wing. Here, the poll body found that 40 of the 55 members of legislative assembly backed the Shinde faction, which translated to 76% of the total votes polled by the unified party in the 2019 assembly elections.
• Moreover, 13 of the 18 Lok Sabha members of the party backed Shinde, which translated to 73% of the total votes polled in the 2019 general elections.

Lack of Internal Democracy:

• The EC order asked the Shinde faction to amend the 2018 constitution of the party in line with the 1951 Representation of the Peoples Act and conform to internal democracy.
• The ECI order had strong words for the lack of internal democracy in the party and asked all parties to ensure that their constitutions reflected a democratic ethos.