Published Oct 26, 2026 | 5:50 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 26, 2026 | 5:50 PM
Congress party's MLC candidates Ramreddy Sarvotham Reddy and Sama Ram Mohan Reddy
Synopsis: Congress’s candidates for both Graduates’ constituencies going to the polls in Telangana have been collecting enrolment details through their own websites and WhatsApp accounts, with private firms involved, outside the official portal. The Chief Electoral Officer’s office says the practice had not come to its notice. The BRS has sought an inquiry and a technical audit.
With just 11 days left to file applications to register for the new Graduates’ electoral rolls in Telangana, Congress candidates in both constituencies have been enrolling voters through their own channels, a personal website in one case and a WhatsApp business account in the other, with third-party companies involved.
Telangana’s election officials, however, told South First they were unaware of either arrangement.
Ramreddy Sarvotham Reddy, the Congress nominee for the Warangal-Khammam-Nalgonda Graduates’ constituency, has been hosting a link to Form-18, the application graduates must file to get enrolled, on his personal website, ramreddysarvotham.com.
The link directs users to a third-party website, conbiz.in, where they can fill Form-18 and submit documents without any link or reference to the Telangana Chief Electoral Officer’s website.
Voter registration process – Sarvotham Reddy’s website, Form 18 hosted on Conbiz, and a WhatsApp acknowledgement
Applicants then receive a WhatsApp message carrying a Form-18 acknowledgement and an application number. The messages also carry the third-party name Conbiz, and a tagline “powered by 24HR7 Commerce Pvt Ltd”. They also include a link to the CEO’s website to track the application.
The site also departs from the official process in several ways. It does not apply the 100 KB limit for photographs and 200 KB limit for supporting documents, set on the CEO’s portal. It accepts Aadhaar and voter ID cards as uploads, though not mandatory.
Sama Ram Mohan Reddy, the Congress candidate from the Mahabubnagar-Rangareddy-Hyderabad constituency, had also put up a voter-enrolment link on his website, which has since been taken down. His team, however, continues to collect documents on WhatsApp.
Screengrab of a text exchange with MLC candidate Sama Ram Mohan Reddy’s WhatsApp Business Account
A message to the business account in Ram Mohan Reddy’s name gets an automated reply asking for an Aadhaar card (front and back) or other address proof, a passport-size photograph, and a degree certificate to help with the “Graduate MLC enrolment”. The reply made no mention of Form-18.
The Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee’s election committee has confirmed that this is the candidate’s official WhatsApp account.
Telangana’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) ordered fresh rolls for both constituencies, with 1 November as the qualifying date, ahead of the regular vacancies due in March 2027. Since the rolls are being prepared from scratch, even those on the existing list must submit new Form-18 applications with authenticated copies of their certificates.
According to the guidelines issued by the CEO on 17 September, voters can enrol online through the CEO’s website, in person to electoral registration officers and other designated officers, or by post. It does not mention private portals or messaging apps.
South First met the Additional Chief Electoral Officer Vasam Venkateswar Reddy on Monday, who said that the matter had not been brought to the office’s attention until then.
“We cannot determine whether collecting data and registering voters through third parties is illegal or invalid without conducting an inquiry,” he said. “Voters should ideally register themselves, but if a third party does it, the voter must be aware of it.”
On Sarvotham Reddy’s website hosting Form-18 and collecting voter information, he said the office would look into it and order the website’s removal if any wrongdoing is found.
On Monday, a BRS delegation led by former minister and MLA Talasani Srinivas Yadav submitted a representation to CEO C Sudharsan Reddy. The complaint, dated 25 October and signed by BRS general secretary Soma Bharath Kumar, raises concerns about Sarvotham Reddy’s website.
The party’s central objection is that a candidate’s personal website is facilitating voter registration with no visible link to the CEO’s portal. It wants the poll authorities to clarify whether the site was ever authorised.
BRS argues that if the ECI has permitted it, every other recognised party and contesting candidate must get the same facility through an enforceable order; if not, the enrolment done through the site should be nullified.
The party wants enrolment through the site stopped immediately, a comprehensive investigation, and a technical audit to rule out unauthorised access to, or manipulation of, the official system. It also says the audit is needed to determine whether the arrangement gives the candidate a chance to influence voters in his favour.
It also asks the CEO to examine the roles of Conbiz, 24HR7 Commerce and a third entity, TEKFINOTAX, including their authorisation, their access to applicants’ details and their relationship with the candidate.
Referring to screenshots sent to an applicant, which include an application number and a link to check the status, the BRS says the same number and applicant details appear on the official electoral registration status page. It asked the CEO to explain how a private website communicates with the official system, how it generates application numbers, and whether the site was given legitimate access.
The party also wants officials to determine who controls the information collected through the site, where it is stored, who can access it and whether it is being used for anything beyond registration. It says the personal details of lakhs of applicants may have been collected without adequate safeguards, and questions whether a candidate should have access to applicants’ Aadhaar information at all.
The BRS further seeks verification of the applications received through the site to weed out false, duplicate or ineligible entries. It wants the CEO to determine whether officials were aware of the arrangement, whether they obtained the required permissions, and whether any administrative lapse or outside pressure shaped how the matter was handled. It also seeks legal action against anyone found responsible, including officials who, it says, failed in their duties.
The party has also sought a written response on the action taken. With the 6 November deadline approaching, the BRS has asked that the matter be treated urgently to protect electoral integrity and applicants’ data.
Draft rolls for the graduate MLC polls are due on 25 November, followed by a claims and objections period. The final list of voters will be published on 30 December.
Also Read:
Telangana BJP chief Ramachander Rao likely to contest MLC poll; BRS may field a lightweight
(Edited by R Rajesh Kumar.)
