Congress drags on disqualification of turncoat MLAs in Telangana

No decision has been taken so far on disqualification of BRS MLAs who defected to the Congress in the State, even a month after the High Court set a four week deadline to the Speaker for deciding on disqualification

Hyderabad: The double standards of the Congress party are becoming all the more clear on the matter of dealing with defections, with the party national leadership, which took stringent action against defectors in various States, dragging its feet on the same issue in Telangana. No decision has been taken so far on disqualification of BRS MLAs who defected to the Congress in the State, even a month after the High Court set a four week deadline to the Speaker for deciding on the disqualification petitions against the defected MLAs.

The High Court, on September 9, had directed the State Legislative Assembly Secretary to place before the Speaker the file of disqualification petitions of three MLAs – Tellam Venkat Rao, Kadiyam Srihari and Danam Nagender – who defected to the Congress and to decide on the action to be taken within four weeks. The Court also said a status report with the schedule of action had to be communicated to the Registrar of the High Court, failing which the Court would re-open the case suo moto for hearing. Just as the deadline of four weeks got near, the Assembly Secretary approached the High Court last week, challenging the single judge bench order. However, the High Court division bench comprising Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice J Sreenivasa Rao refused to pass any interim orders and posted the matter to October 24 for the next hearing.

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In another petition filed by Praja Shanti Party chief KA Paul as well, the High Court had issued notices to the Assembly Secretary, the Election Commission of India and the 10 defected BRS MLAs, asking them to file their responses.

It was just before the Lok Sabha polls that BRS MLA Danam Nagender defected to the ruling Congress and even contested as its candidate from Secunderabad Lok Sabha constituency. Nine other BRS MLAs followed his footsteps and defected to the Congress. Despite the BRS filing disqualification petitions to the Speaker, no action has been taken so far. Instead, the Congress government adopted delaying techniques and even denied to have inducting MLAs like Arekapudi Gandhi, apparently to avoid Gandhi facing disqualification in the wake of the High Court directions.

Sources in the State Legislature informed that as the issue was pending in the High Court, no decision has been taken.

Even as this was happening in Telangana, the Congress disqualified six of its own MLAs who defected to the BJP in Himachal Pradesh earlier this year. In September, the Congress-led government also brought a legislation in Himachal Pradesh Assembly to revoke pension benefits of defected legislators. The Congress also held protests last month, marking the second anniversary of defection of eight Congress MLAs to BJP in Goa.