The EC has also accorded `Ad hoc national party' status to both the groups.The Commission's move came after the common symbol of the united Janata Dal, `Wheel' was jammed due to controversy between the rival factions.

However, sources in the Sharad Yadav-led Janata Dal disclosed that the three constituents of the re-invented Janata Dal - Lok Shakti, Samata Party and the faction led by Sharad Yadav would fight the ensuing Lok Sabha and assembly polls under a common banner with `one name, one flag and one symbol'.

The sources also divulged that leaders of the Janata Parivar -- Sharad Yadav, JH Patel and Ram Vilas Paswan of Janata Dal, Lok Shakti president Ramakrishna Hegde and Samata Party presidentGeorge Fernandes had reached the decision at a meeting in Banglore on Saturday.

``They had also suggested to the Election Commission names including `Sanyukta Janata Dal and Jan Shakti and sought a common symbol,'' the sources added.

Earlier, the Yadav group had given three options for party name and two for party symbol, the Deve Gowda group had submitted two options for party name and three for symbols.

Both the factions had given "Cart" as a preference for the symbol. The Election Commission sources said an application was still awaited from the Sharad Yadav group, giving its consent for the symbol and the name for the party headed by him.pThe Commission had frozen the Janata Dal poll symbol `Chakra' (wheel) on Sunday as an interim measure and directed the two rival factions to give in by Sunday evening their preferences for a symbol and nomenclature. A decision on which of the two groups is the `real' claimant to the `Chakra' symbol and the Janata Dal name would be decided on the basis of theirperformance in the coming Lok Sabha elections, it directed. However, the Commission said that for the time being, both groups would be treated as ad-hoc national parties and given due facilities.