Hyderabad: Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), which drew a blank in Lok Sabha elections, forfeited deposits in eight out of 17 constituencies in Telangana while its vote share came down drastically since Assembly elections were held six months ago.

The BRS, which suffered its worst-ever defeat since its inception in 2001, failed to retain a single out of nine Lok Sabha seats it won in 2019. The party, which lost power to Congress recently, also faced the ignominy of its candidates losing deposits in Adilabad, Nizamabad, Zaheerabad, Malkajgiri, Secunderabad, Hyderabad, Chevella, and Mahbubnagar.

Three of these seats (Zaheerabad, Chevella and Mahabubnagar) were won by the BRS in the previous elections. The BJP also forfeited deposits in two constituencies while the Congress candidate in one place.

Under the Representation of the People Act, 1951, only candidates securing at least one-sixth of the total polled votes cast are entitled to a deposit refund. The security deposit was Rs 25,000 for general candidates and Rs 12,500 for Scheduled Caste nominees. BRS candidates finished a distant third in 14 constituencies and second in two constituencies (Mahbubabad and Khammam). In Hyderabad, the BRS candidate finished a poor fourth.

The BJP candidates finished third and forfeited deposits in Mahabubabad and Khammam constituencies. Putting up its best-ever performance, the saffron party doubled its 2019 tally, to win eight seats. It finished runner-up in seven constituencies.