Hyderabad: The Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) leadership has decided to approach the Election Commission again on the symbols issue. The TRS leadership is worried about election symbols being allotted to independent candidates in every election, which resemble its own symbol.
In the 2018 assembly elections, the TRS lost some seats by a small margin due to the 'truck' symbol, which was allotted to an Independent candidate and which TRS leaders said resembled their election symbol, the 'car'. In the recent Huzurnagar by-election, an independent candidate who got the truck symbol polled more votes than the BJP and TD candidates.
TRS leaders say that in rural areas people by mistake are voting for the truck symbol instead of their party symbol, the car. TRS leaders said at least 10 TRS candidates were defeated due to the election symbols.
A senior TRS leader said that they have two options: requesting the Election Commission to ban election symbols like truck and road roller, or changing their party election symbol, the car.
He said the second option is fraught with danger for the party as the TRS election symbol has reached every nook and corner of Telangana in the last one decade and if anyone asks what is the TRS symbol, people will say it's the car. If the TRS changes its election symbol people will be even more confused and the election commission is free to allot truck, road roller and present TRS election symbol car also to independent candidates. This will become more danger to TRS political future said a senior party leader.
The TRS leadership has asked its senior leaders to prepare a list of symbols that resemble the party's symbol of a car, which can then be submitted to the Election Commission requesting a ban on them in the free symbols list.
