India, Nov. 25 -- The Bombay High Court has rejected a petition by the Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi (VBA) seeking to retain its "gas cylinder" symbol for the upcoming local body elections in the state.

The VBA had written to the State Election Commission (SEC) on May 26, asking that the symbol be reserved for the party. However, on October 16, the SEC replied that the Returning Officer (RO) would decide symbol allotment during the actual election process. Calling this response "arbitrary and evasive", the VBA approached the high court on November 13 through senior advocate Prakash Ambedkar assisted by advocates Sandesh more and Hitendra Gandhi.

After failing to secure the symbol as a representation of the party, the VBA argued that it had co...