Lion or chicken: Why elections in Pakistan are a game of symbols

A missing electoral symbol has dominated the airwaves during the election season in Pakistan.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), one of the largest political parties in the South Asian nation, is set to participate in the upcoming elections without its electoral symbol —the cricket bat — following a verdict by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), a constitutional entity tasked with organising elections in the nation.

This decision will likely adversely impact the party that had led the federal government following the 2018 elections and won in two provinces.

Cricket is the most popular sport in Pakistan as well as in entire South Asia, and cricketers are often given the status of demi-gods in the region.

For the PTI, it carries added significance as party leader Imran Khan was a star cricketer before turning to politics. Khan captained Pakistan's national team to triumph in the 1992 Cricket World Cup, a moment celebrated as a high point in the nation's sporting history.

The Election Commission penalised PTI for failing to conduct its internal party elections in adherence to its own constitution.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan upheld this penalty, which many observers view as overly severe and disproportionate.

The repercussions for PTI are significant: not only has the party been barred from using its emblematic cricket bat symbol, but it has also been prohibited from choosing any alternative electoral unified symbol for the party.

As a result, each PTI candidate will be compelled to contest the elections under different symbols.

As if that was not enough, many PTI candidates have been assigned electoral symbols considered insulting or humiliating.

For instance, a candidate once accused of possessing a bottle of liquor, an offence in Pakistan, has been given the symbol of a bottle. Other such symbols include an eggplant, a chicken and a shoe.

Symbols of democracy

Due to high levels of illiteracy, electoral symbols help voters identify their favourite political parties and candidates on the ballot paper. Ahead of elections, parties and candidates, therefore, try to ensure that their symbols are visible to the voters.

Since an electoral symbol acts as a brand logo, a party invests substantially in it, creating songs, slogans and visual representations to infuse it with meaning and to rally voters around it.

In the imagination of the common man, electoral symbols embody a party's manifesto and signify everything the party stands for.

The election commissions in India and Pakistan do not allow political parties to design their own electoral symbols.

The parties have to pick a symbol from a list of symbols maintained by the commission. The Election Commission of Pakistan currently offers a menu of three hundred symbols, which include animals and birds like lions, eagles and cranes and objects such as arrows, swords and lamps.

Once a political party has selected its preferred symbols from the list, it becomes "reserved" for the party.

Independent candidates are allotted symbols from the list of remaining symbols by election officers at the district level. Legally, these officers are not obliged to consider the candidates' preference for the symbol.

Called Returning Officers, these officials can use their authority to the disadvantage of candidates running as independents. Though the option for appeal is available, it may result in election delay in the constituency. Candidates often reluctantly accept confusing or unpopular symbols that can cost them votes.

A rich history

Electoral symbols hold a unique position in Pakistan’s political history.

In 1970, Pakistan held its first multiparty elections on the basis of adult franchise.

In these elections, the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) emerged victorious in West Pakistan, while the Awami League triumphed in East Pakistan, now Bangladesh.

The PPP chose the sword as its symbol, resonating with its leader Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's name, which means ‘Sword of Ali’ - a revered Islamic icon.

The Awami League, representing East Pakistan, opted for the boat. In a region where boats are integral to daily life and livelihood, the boat carried cultural significance and symbolised hope and survival. The symbol signified the party's vision of a journey towards greater autonomy and rights.

In 1977, the Pakistan National Alliance (PNA), an electoral alliance of nine parties, chose the plough as their symbol, aiming to connect with the large farming community in the predominantly agricultural country.

The plough symbolised growth and prosperity, aligning with the alliance's promise of economic development and social progress. The party leaders also emphasised it as a symbol of weeding out unpleasant Western cultural influences in the society.

Following the revival of democracy in 1988, the PPP faced a new alliance, the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI), which picked the bicycle as its symbol. As a common and practical mode of transportation, the bicycle represented the IJI's alignment with the common man.

Due to legal complications, when the PPP switched its symbol to the arrow, it kept its original symbol by registering itself as two different parties. The arrow, also a weapon like its original sword symbol, denoted energy, dynamism, and progress.

The new symbol hinted at the party’s transformation under Benazir Bhutto – who went on to become the prime minister twice – after her father and former president Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s death and the end of martial law.

When the IJI dissolved, the Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) emerged as a major party and picked the lion as its electoral symbol. The lion has a strong cultural resonance in South Asia as a symbol of strength and bravery. The party has successfully used its electoral symbol to forge an emotional bond with voters.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) entered the political arena with the cricket bat as its symbol, reflecting the personal history of its leader. The bat symbolised PTI's challenge to traditional politics and its appeal to sport-loving youth. The cricket bat can be associated with teamwork, sportsmanship and fairness.

Setback for PTI

The loss of its electoral symbol poses a significant challenge for the PTI in the upcoming elections. Its rural voters may be confused by the array of alternative symbols, finding it difficult to identify PTI candidates on the ballot.

While voting, they will have to stamp different symbols for party candidates for national and provincial assemblies. In some constituencies, rivals are fielding candidates with similar names and symbols in a deliberate attempt to confuse potential PTI supporters.

The absence of its recognised symbol also hampers PTI's efforts at voter mobilisation.

As a former cricket star and philanthropist, Imran Khan is an expert in branding. Under his guidance, the party has invested heavily in its symbol through songs, slogans, and imagery, creating a strong brand identity. This loss could dilute its campaign effectiveness.

But he is himself in jail, facing multiple cases which he alleges are politically motivated.

Post-election challenges are also anticipated due to the loss of the symbol. Pakistan’s constitution prevents party legislators from crossing the floor or joining another party and mandates voting according to party lines on critical matters, including leadership elections and no-confidence motions.

Elected independently, PTI legislators would be free to join any party or even form new groups, potentially leading to shifting loyalties and what is known in the sub-continent as ‘horse trading’.

In its confrontation with Pakistan's powerful military establishment, PTI faces an unprecedented disadvantage, a challenge that many other parties have also been through.

While it will likely remain a major political force, its electoral prospects in the upcoming elections appear significantly diminished due to these circumstances.