Hyderabad: BRS working president K.T. Rama Rao urged the Election Commission to abandon Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and conduct upcoming elections, including those in Bihar, through the traditional ballot paper system.
After meeting officials in New Delhi, KTR told the media that public trust in EVMs has eroded nationwide. He said the BRS delegation presented six key points to the Commission, with the demand to scrap EVMs being central. “Many developed countries, including the US, UK, Germany, and Italy, tried EVMs but returned to paper ballots,” he said.
He alleged that in India, the world’s largest democracy, voters increasingly complain that EVMs divert votes to unintended candidates. He called for a complete rollback of the system, starting with the Bihar Assembly elections.
KTR also attacked rival parties, accusing them of misleading voters. “In Telangana, the Congress made 420 false promises during elections,” he said, demanding action against parties that fail to implement their manifestos, including revocation of their recognition.
He reiterated a long-standing BRS concern over symbols resembling its poll symbol, the ‘Car’. In 2019, he said, the party lost the Bhongir Lok Sabha seat by 5,000 votes, while a similar symbol, ‘Road Roller’, drew 27,000 votes without any campaign. He claimed that in the recent Assembly polls, BRS lost 14 seats by margins under 6,000 votes, mostly due to similar-looking symbols. The party urged the Commission to remove such symbols from the ballot.
KTR also demanded that the Election Commission tour states, consult voters directly, and implement genuine electoral reforms. He said the Commission heard the party’s concerns positively and reiterated BRS’s firm stand to restore the ballot paper system.
BRS delegation meets Election Commission in New Delhi, seeks key electoral reforms and safeguards
The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) has formally submitted a detailed representation to the Election Commission of India (ECI), urging the constitutional body to address critical… pic.twitter.com/Y8klR5KJOY
— BRS Party (@BRSparty) August 5, 2025
