Jubilee Hills bypoll: BRS to move Supreme Court, High Court over ECI inaction against Congress

The BRS has accused the Election Commission of India of favouring the ruling Congress party ahead of the Jubilee Hills by-election. Alleging inaction despite multiple complaints and evidence of Model Code of Conduct violations by Congress leaders, including Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, BRS leaders announced plans to approach the High Court and Supreme Court.

Hyderabad: Accusing the Election Commission of India (ECI) of being biased towards the ruling Congress ahead of the Jubilee Hills by-election, the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) on Thursday announced plans to approach the High Court and the Supreme Court against the Commission’s inaction.

The party leaders questioned the Commission’s continued silence despite the misuse of power and violations of Model Code of Conduct by the Congress.

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Addressing a press conference at Telangana Bhavan, former MP B Vinod Kumar and BRS general secretary Soma Bharat Kumar said neither the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Sudarshan Reddy nor the ECI had acted on multiple complaints backed by evidence of code violations by Congress leaders including Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy. They said the Commission’s partisan attitude was eroding public faith in democratic institutions.

Vinod Kumar recalled that the ECI had earlier imposed a 48-hour campaign ban on former Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao and former Minister G Jagadish Reddy for MCC violations, but was showing lenience towards Revanth Reddy.

“Isn’t it a violation when the Chief Minister warns that welfare schemes will stop if people don’t vote for the Congress? Or when Congress candidate Naveen Yadav threatens BRS workers? Why is the CEO silent?” he asked.

The BRS leader said party chief Chandrashekhar Rao had deputed him and Bharat Kumar to represent the party before the Chief Election Commissioner.

“We met the CEC in Delhi and questioned why no action was taken despite clear proof,” he said, recalling how former CEC TN Seshan once defied even the Prime Minister’s Office to uphold the ECI’s autonomy and sanctity of elections.

Bharat Kumar said the ECI’s inaction was a serious threat to democracy. He demanded deployment of central forces in Jubilee Hills, stating that the State police were working under the Congress’s influence.

“If Revanth Reddy violates the code, the ECI looks away. This raises doubts whether the Election Commission even exists?” he said.