Telangana Assembly speaker rejects BRS petitions against defected MLAs

Hyderabad: Telangana Assembly Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar on Wednesday dismissed the BRS petitions seeking disqualification of its defected MLAs, citing lack of evidence. Giving a clean chit to five legislators, he stated there was no proof that they had joined another party (the Congress), thereby rejecting the disqualification pleas filed against them. The BRS is likely to move the Supreme Court challenging the Speaker’s ruling.

The Speaker delivered his verdict on the petitions filed by the opposition BRS, seeking the disqualification of MLAs who allegedly shifted allegiance to the Congress after 2023 assembly polls. Acting on the Supreme Court’s directive, he had recently concluded the trial under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution. The BRS had filed petitions against ten such legislators. While the Speaker pronounced his verdict on petitions pertaining to five MLAs, decisions on three more are expected within a couple of days. Two legislators Kadiam Srihari and Danam Nagender have sought additional time to appear before him. The BRS termed the ruling a mockery of the Constitution.

The five MLAs who were given a clean chit are Arikepudi Gandhi, Tellam Venkata Rao, Bandla Krishna Mohan Reddy, T. Prakash Goud, and Gudem Mahipal Reddy.

In a first for the Telangana Legislative Assembly, the Speaker conducted in-camera hearings that included cross-examinations between the counsels of the petitioners and the defected MLAs.

The BRS leaders had approached the Supreme Court earlier this year over the delay in the Speaker’s decision. On July 31, the apex court directed the Assembly to dispose of the disqualification petitions within three months. The MLAs reportedly argued that they remain members of the BRS and had met Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy only to discuss development activities in their respective constituencies, denying any formal defection to the Congress.

Reacting sharply to the Speaker’s ruling, BRS Working President KT Rama Rao (KTR) accused the Congress of murdering democracy on the floor of the Assembly. He alleged that the decision showed utter disrespect towards the Constitution and the Supreme Court.

“Merely posing for photos holding a copy of the Constitution is not enough,” KTR said, adding that Rahul Gandhi would “go down in history as an incompetent leader who failed to respect the very Anti-Defection Law brought in by his own father, the late Rajiv Gandhi.”

KTR further alleged that the Congress is shielding defected MLAs to avoid by-elections, fearing backlash from growing anti-incumbency under Revanth Reddy’s two-year rule. With panchayat elections around the corner, he claimed the ruling party was making a mockery of the Constitution at every step from enticing BRS MLAs to the latest decision of the Speaker, which he said was taken under pressure from the Congress leadership.