JD(U) plans to change symbol from 'arrow' to 'wheel': Nitish Kumar

Patna: Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday said that efforts are on to change the JD(U) symbol from arrow to 'Chakra' (wheel) as the party lost many seats due to confusion among the voters over its symbol, which resembled to other parties.

"Voters of JD(U) get confused because of similarity of its symbol with some other parties as a result of which the party suffers. This has been noticed in election after election," Kumar told reporters stating efforts were on to change the symbol from arrow to 'chakra' (wheel).

"The party lost on many seats due to this reason this time (in the Bihar elections)," he said.

Many JD(U) leaders had complained that candidates of JMM and Shiv Sena having bow and arrow as symbol got JD(U) votes in the recent Bihar elections.

"Owing to this there is a common opinion within the party to change the symbol," Kumar said.

"There is a thinking among party leaders to choose 'Chakra' (wheel) as the alternative symbol. Talks are on with Gowda (former PM H D Deve Gowda) in this direction. If he (Gowda) does not have any objection to the Chakra symbol, the party will officially approach the Election Commission for the wheel symbol," he said.

JD(U) General Secretary K C Tyagi said the wheel was the symbol of Janata Dal in 1998. When it split into JD(U) and JD(S) of H D Deve Gowda in 1999, due to non-agreement between the two, the EC did not allot the wheel symbol to either of the two.

"Now since JD(U) wishes to get the wheel symbol, the Election Commission advised us to seek approval of Deve Gowda for it," Tyagi said adding, "Since we have friendly relations with Deve Gowdaji's party, it should not be a difficult task.”