High Court Asks Speaker To Decide On Defecting MLAs

The Chief Justice of the Telangana High Court today delivered a verdict on the petitions seeking disqualifications of several MLAs who had defected from the BRS and joined the ruling Congress.

The court directed the Assembly Speaker to take a decision on the issue at an appropriate time (i. e., it did not set any deadline).

The bench had earlier set aside the single judge bench's verdict.

The High Court's CJ bench said in the judgment that there was no time frame for the Assembly Speaker to take a decision. It, however, suggested that a decision should be taken at an appropriate time and that too as per the 10th Schedule of the Constitution.

It suggested that the Speaker should take a decision keeping in mind the anti-defection law and the five-year Assembly deadline.

With the latest verdict, it can be said the MLAs who have switched sides have received relief.

Several MLAs, including Kadiyam Srihari, Vellam Venkat Rao and Danam Nagender, who won as BRS candidates in last year's Assembly elections, recently joined the Congress. BRS MLAs Padi Kaushik Reddy and K P Vivekanand then filed petitions seeking directions to the Assembly Speaker to take action against them. BJP MLA Aleti Maheshwar Reddy filed another petition seeking disqualification of Danam Nagender.

The petitions were first heard by a single judge bench of the High Court. On September 9, the single judge bench had ruled that the schedule of hearing on the disqualification petitions should be finalised within four weeks.

The legislature secretary had filed an appeal petition before a division bench of the High Court seeking quashing of the order. The division bench of the High Court headed by the Chief Justice heard the appeal petition and delivered the final verdict today.