Munugode Assembly bypoll: Soap box, road roller a headache for ruling TRS

HYDERABAD: The ruling TRS on Monday requested the Election Commission of India (ECI) not to allot free symbols that are identical to car, its party  symbol, to any candidate in the upcoming Munugode Assembly bypoll. It claimed that due to the allocation of symbols similar to car, it had lost votes in the previous elections. TRS general secretary Soma Bharath Kumar submitted a memorandum to this effect to ECI officials.

The list of free symbols, which the TRS requested to freeze, included camera, chapati roller, dolli, road roller, soap dish, television, sewing machine and ship. “Opponents of our party have taken advantage of identical symbols, which are available in the list of free symbols to confuse the voters in choosing and recognising TRS’ car on the EVMs,” the TRS said in its letter.

The ruling party recalled that on its request the ECI removed some symbols like hat, iron box, truck and auto-rickshaw. But, some  more identical symbols also have the potential in causing confusion among the voters and to divert the voters to the “so-called Independents”, TRS said in its letter.

It also objected that the road roller was still present in the free symbols for Munugode bypoll. “All the eight symbols, including road roller, in the list of free symbols, be deleted for conducting fair election and in the interest of voters’ right to exercise their discretion and choose the symbol of their choice without any confusion,” the TRS appealed to the ECI.