Hyderabad: Telangana Rakshana Sena (TRS) has responded to the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) notice regarding its registration, seeking copies of nearly 1,000 objections received by the poll panel and requesting a personal hearing in the matter. In its response, filed in compliance with the Delhi high court’s July 7 order, the party argued that it could not effectively defend its case without access to the objections cited in the ECI’s June 23 communication.The party said the commission had initially approved the name “Telangana Rakshana Sena” on April 28 and that, since then, it had built an organisational network across nearly 105 assembly constituencies. It contended that changing the party’s name at this stage would adversely affect its grassroots operations and public outreach.Questioning the objections against its registration, the party maintained that the number of complaints alone should not determine the fate of its application and called for a scrutiny of their authenticity and legal merit. It alleged that some objections could be repetitive or politically motivated.The party further argued that no political party with the same name exists in the ECI’s records and that terms such as “Telangana” and “Rakshana” are generic expressions that cannot be exclusively claimed by any organisation. It also pointed to the existence of similarly named registered outfits, including Telangana Rajya Samithi and Telangana Rakshana Samithi (Democratic), contending that each has a distinct political identity, leadership and organisational structure.Citing precedents in the ECI’s register of recognised and unrecognised political parties, the party said several organisations across the country share geographical or ideological nomenclature. It cited multiple variants of parties using names such as “Aam Aadmi”, “Praja Sena” and “Republican Party of India”. Invoking the principles of natural justice, the party requested the commission to furnish copies of the objections and schedule a personal hearing before taking a final decision.
