PESHAWAR, Aug 2: District returning officer Shahjehan Khan Akhundzada has rejected 35 applications filed by candidates for changing their election symbols. The DRO, who is the Peshawar district and sessions judge, observed that these applications were not maintainable as he had no powers to change the election symbols.

The officer observed that the returning officers were empowered to assign election symbols. He added that he had no powers under the election laws to change the decision.

Most of the applicants had challenged symbols like banana and radish allotted to them by the returning officer on June 30.

The symbol of banana in the symbols list was meant for the panels of nazims and naib nazims, whereas that of radish was in the list for general councillors.

The returning officers appointed for the 92 union councils had allotted the symbol of banana in union councils where five panels of nazims and naib nazims are in the field.

After the allotment of symbols, the two symbols remained the most contentious as the candidates who were allotted these symbols were disappointed. They continued requesting the returning officers to change the symbols but in vain. So they filed the instant applications.

The returning officers claimed that on technical grounds they could not change the symbol when five panels of nazims and naib nazims had been contesting against each other in a single union council.

In the symbols meant for nazims and naib nazims, who contest as a single panel, the symbol of banana is on top of section A-I of the list. The officers claimed that ballot papers would be printed with the symbols remaining in the same sequence. Therefore, this symbol could not be left out.

The candidates said that there were a number of jokes related to banana in different areas, and added that rival candidates had been teasing them for choosing banana as a symbol.