Eggplants, lions and hookahs: How Pakistan's polls became the stage for comic electoral symbols

As Pakistan gears up for elections, candidates like Aamir Mughal wield unusual symbols, like eggplants or "baingan," assigned to them by the Election Commission.Mughal, a contender vying for Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, aligns with imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan. Khan's supporters, now standing as independent candidates in the upcoming February national election, have been allocated electoral symbols, with Mughal's being the eggplant. These symbols, while often bizarre, play a crucial role in identifying candidates, especially in regions with low literacy rates.

The military-backed crackdown on opposition parties has intensified the challenges faced by candidates.

With Imran Khan's party losing its cricket bat emblem, his followers, now contesting as independents, encounter harassment and symbol-related hurdles, complicating their electoral bids.

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Eggplants and endorsements

Despite the comedic undertones, candidates like Mughal creatively embrace their symbols. Mughal's eggplant-themed campaign, a nod to Imran Khan's affiliation, gainedtraction, with the vegetable's popularity soaring and becoming synonymous with the candidate's association.

In Punjab, Ejaz Gaddan's (a 50-year-old Bahawalpur candidate) bed symbol evokedmixed reactions. While perceived as humiliating by some, Gaddan reframes its significance, highlighting its practical utility and cultural resonance, drawing connections to life and death in Pakistani households.

Candidates like Shehryar Afridi confront symbols with negative connotations, like the bottle, associated with emptiness or alcohol in local contexts. Afridi ingeniously reinterpretedthe symbol, transforming it into a medicine bottle to address societal issues and combat stigma.

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What is an electoral symbol?

An electoral symbol, a distinct pictorial representation, is allocated by Pakistan's election commission to political entities and candidates. These symbols, displayed on ballot papers, aid voters, particularly the large illiterate population, in identifying their preferred choice. Pakistan's electoral landscape encompasses numerous candidates and parties, each represented by a symbol on the ballot paper, facilitating the voting process. While parties typically maintain longstanding symbols, such as Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and its cricket bat emblem, the Election Commission recently revoked PTI's symbol due to procedural issues, sparking allegations of military interference, vehemently denied by the army.

(With inputs from agencies)