High Court issues notices to two BRS MLAs who defected to Congress

Hyderabad: On Tuesday, the Telangana High Court Single Bench comprising Justice Bollam Vijaysen Reddy issued Notices to the Principal Secretary, Law and Legislative Department, Secretary, Telangana State Legislative Assembly, ECI and the two MLAs viz Tellam Venkat Rao and Kadiyam Srihari, both BRS MLAs, who defected into the Congress party and directed them to respond to the notices by 05-06-2024.

On the last date of hearing, the Judge directed the Advocate General to ensure that the disqualification petitions filed by the petitioner reach the Hon’ble Speaker and intimate the same to the Court on Tuesday.

Accordingly, it was informed that the disqualification petitions filed by the petitioner have reached the Speaker’s office and acknowledgment to this effect was also furnished to the counsel for the petitioner Gandra Mohan Rao.

Gandra Mohan Rao, Senior Counsel appearing for the petitioner Kuna Pandu Vivekananda, BRS MLA insisted upon the Court to issue notice to the Speaker, TS Assembly and direct him to act upon the disqualification petitions at the earliest citing various Supreme Court Judgments, wherein the SC had directed the Speakers of other states to act upon the disqualification petitions pending before them, duly setting up a time frame, within which the Speaker had to act and on the same lines.

Brushing aside the contention of the senior counsel Gandra Mohan Rao, Advocate General A Sudershan Reddy informed the Court that the petitioner has rushed to the Court within 10 days of the filing of the Writ Petition, seeking a direction to the Speaker to act upon the disqualification petitions, when the Hon’ble Speaker has 3 months time to act upon the petitions, that too the petitioner, armed with the disqualification petition went to the Speaker’s house, flanked by his supporters of his Assembly Constituency, with an intention to get the media glare and attention, which the Speaker thwarted by not meeting him.

The AG further said that the Courts, while hearing cases wherein the MRO or RDO are issued Notices, give them minimum 10 days to respond to the notices and in this issue, the Speaker under the Xth Schedule is being haunted upon by the petitioner to act up on the disqualification petitions, merely 10 days after filing of the petition.

On this sole ground, the writ petition filed should be dismissed as not maintainable, contended the Advocate General.

Raghuram, senior counsel appearing for Danam Nagender, MLA Khairatabad, who defected into the Congress party informed the Court that Notices have already been issued to the State and the MLA in this case and further informed the Court that the writ petition filed seeking disqualification of Danam Nagender is not maintainable by citing the five-Judge Constitutional Bench Judgment of the Supreme Court.

The Judge was hearing two writ petitions viz., the one filed by Kuna Pandu Vivekananda, MLA BRS party, seeking a direction to the Hon’ble Speaker, TSLA to act upon the disqualification petitions, sent by the petitioner to the Hon’ble Speaker on 10-04-2024 via Registered Post and e-mail seeking disqualification of Tellam Venkata Rao, MLA 119-Bhadradri Koghagudem, BRS party and second one of Kadiyam Srihari, MLA 99 - Ghanpur (SC Reserved) Hanmakonda BRS party for “defecting” into the Congress party.

The writ petition filed by Padi Kaushik Reddy, MLA BRS party from Huzurabad A.C., seeking disqualification of Danam Nagender, MLA Khairatabad BRS party.

HC dismisses three writs filed by contesting candidates challenging rejection

On Tuesday, the High Court Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Jukanti Anil Kumar “dismissed” three writ petitions filed by the aspiring candidates, intending to contest the ensuing Parliamentary Elections in the State of Telangana as “Independent Candidates” viz., (i) Veerabrahma Ravi 13-Nalgonda Lok Sabha Constituency (ii) Kallu Narsimulu Goud, Medak Parliamentary Constituency, Segment No. 6 and (iii) Shaik Toufeez, a resident of Moosapet, Hyderabad filed nomination for 07-Malkajgiri Parliamentary Constituency. The Chief Justice Bench while dismissing the three writ petitions observed that the Courts cannot interfere into the issues of rejection of nominations of candidates aspiring to contest elections as the notification for the Parliamentary elections in the Telangana State has already been issued and once the notification is issued, the courts won’t interfere. Further, the Court directed the petitioners to file election petitions for redressal of their grievance.