Telangana: HC directs Assembly secy to act on disqualification pleas of 3 defected MLAs

Hyderabad, Sep 9 (PTI) The Telangana High Court on Monday directed the state Legislative Assembly Secretary to place the disqualification petitions of three BRS MLAs, who had joined the ruling Congress, before the Telangana Assembly Speaker.

Justice B Vijaysen Reddy, while disposing of the writ petitions filed by BRS and BJP leaders seeking disqualification of three BRS MLAs--Danam Nagender, Tellam Venkat Rao and Kadiyam Srihari, directed the office of the Speaker to issue a schedule within four weeks on hearing and deciding on the petitions and that the schedule has to be communicated to the Registrar of the High Court.

If the schedule is not communicated (within the four weeks), then the High Court on its own will reopen the petitions for hearing, the judge said.

The petitioners—two BRS MLAs K P Vivekanand and P Kaushik Reddy and BJP floor leader in Assembly Alleti Maheshwar Reddy, had approached the High Court seeking direction to the Speaker to decide on the disqualification petitions of the three BRS MLAs that were earlier filed before the Speaker.

BRS Working President K T Rama Rao said the High Court’s directive to the Assembly Secretary to place disqualification petitions before the Speaker is a victory for democracy.

"Now, the honorable Speaker Garu has 4 weeks to restore transparency and uphold the sanctity of the House. We fought relentlessly for this moment, no more betrayal of the people's mandate! Jai Telangana!," Rao, son of BRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao, said on 'X'. PTI