EC shocker for Kavitha; asked to change party name

The Election Commission of India has asked K Kavitha to submit three alternative names for her political party within 15 days after objections were raised to Telangana Rakshana Sena. The objections cited possible voter confusion with the former TRS, now Bharat Rashtra Samithi

Hyderabad: In a significant development, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has directed K Kavitha to change the name of her political party, Telangana Rakshana Sena (TRS), following objections raised by various stakeholders.

According to reports, the ECI, in a communication to Kavitha, asked her to submit three alternative names for the party within 15 days. The Commission reportedly stated that if she failed to respond within the stipulated period, the party’s registration application would be rejected without further notice.

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Kavitha launched her new political outfit at Medchal on April 25 this year, initially naming it Telangana Rashtra Sena. Three days later, on April 28, she renamed it Telangana Rakshana Sena.

Before launching the party, Kavitha had, in February, written to the ECI proposing five names: Telangana Praja Jagruthi, Telangana Jagruthi, Telangana Rakshana Sena, Telangana Rashtra Jagruthi and Telangana Praja Shakthi. She eventually chose Telangana Rakshana Sena.

The ECI had earlier permitted the proposed name to be published for public notice, making it clear that final approval would depend on the objections received during the prescribed period.

According to reports, several objections were submitted, with the principal contention being that the abbreviation TRS for Telangana Rakshana Sena could create confusion among voters because of its similarity to the former name of K Chandrashekar Rao’s party, Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), which was renamed Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) in 2022.