The Sharad Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has requested the Election Commission of India (ECI) to refrain from freezing the party’s symbol or name until the dispute over the identity of the real NCP is resolved. The plea was made during a hearing in New Delhi, during which Ajit Pawar and Sharad Pawar presented arguments to support their claim as the legitimate NCP. In response, the Ajit Pawar camp submitted an affidavit to the EC, urging the commission to rule in their favor by citing a previous instance in which the Shiv Sena name and party symbol were granted to the Eknath Shinde faction based on the number of MLAs and MPs. The Sharad Pawar faction countered these claims by stating that there is no split within the party and that the main NCP remains undivided under the leadership of senior Pawar. They also informed the EC that they have already filed a disqualification petition against Ajit Pawar and eight other MLAs who violated party decisions and aligned with the Shinde-led Shiv Sena. The Ajit Pawar faction, on the other hand, argued that Sharad Pawar ran the NCP autocratically and made arbitrary decisions. They questioned the election of Sharad Pawar as party president, claiming that the process lacked transparency and intra-party democracy. They alleged that elections to party posts were not being held. The Election Commission will continue the hearing on Monday to further examine the claims presented by both factions. Stay updated with the latest news on The Economic Times website and download The Economic Times News App for daily market updates and live business news.