JOIN USThe TDP is headed for a third major split in its four-decade history, with 10 of its 15 MLAs in Telangana Assembly asking the Speaker on Friday to recognise them as TRS members.
Assembly Speaker S Madhusudhanachari, who is considering an earlier application from the Telugu Desam to disqualify its defectors –including its prominent face and current minister in KCR cabinet Talasani Srinivas Yadav – is in a fix as recognising the MLAs has legal repercussions.
Last year, five out of seven Telugu Desam Party MLCs announced merger with the TRS and asked Chairman of the Legislature Council K Swamy Goud to recognise them as ruling party members, despite the legal issues it could trigger.
Former Congress legal advisor Jandhyala Ravishankar said a merger could be considered thus if a party splits right till the grassroot level and joins another party.
“MLAs are not the party; they are merely a part of it. The Supreme Court judgement says a party’s rank and file has to merge (to effect a split).
Even if two-third merges with the TRS, the TDP can move their disqualification with the Speaker,” he said.
TDP working president A Revanth Reddy, tainted in the cash-for-vote scandal, said his party would seek disqualification of all the 10 MLAs who defected to the TRS.
First split
The TDP witnessed its first split in 1984, when the finance minister in NTR government Nadella Bhaskar Rao pulled a coup while NTR was in the US for heart surgery. He became the chief minister with the central support for a month, then launched Democratic TDP and later joined the Congress.
Second split
Chandrababu Naidu engineered the second split in September 1995, taking away a large chunk of TDP MLAs objecting to the increasing interference of NTR’s second wife Lakshmi Parvathi in the government.
A heartbroken NTR died in six months and the 35 or so MLAs of NTR TDP led by Parvathi later switched loyalties to Naidu.
DH News Service
n Last year, five out of seven TDP MLCs announced merger with the TRS
n The MLCs asked Chairman of the Legislature Council K Swamy Goud to recognise them as ruling party members, despite the legal issues it could trigger
n Former Congress legal advisor Jandhyala Ravishankar said a merger could be considered thus if a party splits right till the grassroot level and joins another party