HC dismisses TRS petition to remove symbols similar to car on EVMs in Munugode by-election

The party brought to the notice of the court that in the 2018 Assembly elections, its candidates in several constituencies got fewer votes than they should have because of the presence of symbols similar to the car on the ballot.

The TRS took objection to the presence of the camera, chapati roller, palanquin, road roller, soap box, television set, sewing machine, and ship, which the party argued resembled the car symbol on the EVMs.

TRS general secretary Soma Bharath Kumar, through his counsel, petitioned the high court after being dissatisfied with the EC’s inaction in considering his party’s representation on 10 October for the deletion of symbols similar to the car from the category of free symbols for prevention of their allotment to independent candidates in Munugode by-election.

The party argued before the court that the candidates who were allotted such symbols would cut into the TRS vote share since the voters would not be able to distinguish them from the car symbol.

The party said that these candidates, sometimes, were propped up by those opposed to the TRS in order to divide pro-TRS votes.

The dismissal of the TRS petition came as a dampener to the ruling party, as it considers every vote in Munugode very valuable because it wants to win the seat by a wide margin to send out a message that it was Telangana Chief Minister party chief K Chandrashekar Rao who calls the shots.

As the outcome of the Munugode by-election would decide which party was trending ahead of the Telangana Assembly elections next year, all the three main contenders — the TRS, BJP, and the Congress — are making all-out efforts to win the seat.

Sources said that candidates allotted the road-roller symbol in the 2018 Assembly election polled more votes than the CPI(M) and the BSP in the Munugode, Zaheerabad, Sirpur, and Dornkal constituencies.

Similarly, in Narsampet, Chennur, Dubbaka, Siddipet, Asifabad, Banswada, and Nagarjuna Sagar, independents who were allotted the camera symbol polled more votes than the BSP and the CPI(M) nominees.

In fact, TRS activists organised a demonstration in front of the office of the Munugode returning officer at Chandur on Monday for the removal of symbols similar to the car, which led to the arrest of TRS workers.