The Madras High Court on Monday issued notice to the Election Commission of India (ECI) on a plea filed by Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) founder-president Dr. S. Ramadoss, seeking a direction to allot the party’s traditional ‘mango’ symbol to his faction and to issue an official communication accordingly.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice M M Shrivastava and Justice G Arul Murugan heard the petition and adjourned further proceedings by three weeks.
Appearing for Ramadoss, advocate K Arul submitted that the ECI had mistakenly sent a communication regarding allotment of the mango symbol to the address of former president Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss, who, according to the petitioner, was no longer a member of the party.
Ramadoss alleged that Anbumani had committed fraud upon the Election Commission by submitting forged documents related to the party’s leadership and office bearers. These documents, he said, were already challenged before the Delhi High Court on December 4, 2025.
Ramadoss further stated that the changes to the list of office bearers and the official address of the party under his leadership were duly communicated to the ECI, along with a request for allotment of the mango symbol to his bloc.
When the matter came up, senior advocate NL Rajah sought to make submissions on behalf of Anbumani Ramadoss. However, the Chief Justice firmly stated, “We will not hear you since you are not even a party to the litigation.” Rajah indicated that he would file an application to be impleaded in the case.
Ramadoss informed the Madras High Court that during a recent hearing before the Delhi High Court, the ECI’s counsel stated in open court that due to the ongoing leadership dispute between the father-son duo, the Commission intended to freeze the mango symbol for the 2026 elections.
However, according to the petitioner, despite this statement, the Election Commission had neither issued any fresh communication to him nor officially frozen the symbol.
Taking note of the submissions, the Madras High Court issued notice to the Election Commission and posted the matter for further hearing after three weeks. The dispute reflects deeper internal fissures within the PMK ahead of the 2026 elections, potentially affecting the party’s symbol status and electoral readiness.
