BRS objects to hasty civic poll schedule, clash with Medaram festivities

The BRS has objected to the hurried schedule for upcoming municipal elections, accusing the State Election Commission of undermining democratic norms. The party cited a narrow nomination window, festival clashes and delays in voter list-related processes

Hyderabad: The BRS raised strong objections to the hurried and poorly timed notification for the upcoming municipal elections. Party leaders accused the State Election Commission of undermining democratic norms by issuing the election notification.

Speaking to mediapersons at Telangana Bhavan on Wednesday, BRS general secretary Soma Bharat Kumar said the poll body had allowed only a narrow window for nominations, which commenced on Wednesday. He pointed out that key administrative steps, including the release of the final voter list and the appointment of returning officers, were also completed on the same day.

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He argued that the truncated schedule leaves little time for parties to select candidates and complete documentation.

The BRS leader also pointed to the clash with the Sammakka-Saralamma Jathara, one of the state’s largest tribal festivals, which is currently drawing massive crowds from across Telangana. “When lakhs are travelling for a state festival, how can this be the time to compress an election process?” he asked, adding that the party was not seeking postponement but a more reasonable timeline.

Calling for equal opportunity for all parties, he alleged that the Congress was silent because the rushed schedule suited it politically. “The election notification should be issued first, followed by the gazette notification and then the commencement of the nomination process, as per established practices,” he said. He added that the Commission should extend the deadline for the submission of nominations by at least one week.

Bharat Kumar said there was an erosion of democracy and institutional neutrality in the state. He pointed out that the Assembly Speaker was delaying action in MLA defection cases despite a Supreme Court deadline. He said constitutional authorities must act uniformly and not selectively in matters affecting democratic representation. He alleged that while defected MLAs were given ample time, the Speaker, acting as the Tribunal, was not extending similar consideration to the BRS petitioners.