Telangana HC: Defected MLAs writ, Namasthe Telangana FIR

Hyderabad: 1. The Telangana High Court on Thursday issued notices to Telangana Assembly Speaker, Bhadrachalam MLA Venkata Rao Tellam, Station Ghanpur MLA Kadiyam Srihari, Election Commission of India and others in a writ plea filed by Kuna Pandu Vivekananda, BRS MLA of Qutbullapur constituency. It may be recalled that Venkat Rao Tellam and Kadiyam Srihari who got elected from BRS party, defected and joined Indian National Congress party on April 7 and March 31, 2024 respectively. It is pertinent to note that a writ plea in similar lines was filed against Khairtabad MLA Danam Nagender. Justice B Vijaysen Reddy of Telangana High Court was dealing with a writ plea filed challenging the inaction of Telangana Assembly Speaker on disqualification petition filed by Vivekananda on April 2 and April 8, 2024 vide E-mail under X Schedule of the Constitution of India, against Venkat Rao and Srihari respectively to disqualify them under anti-defection law. The counsel representing Kuna Pandu Vivekananda argued that the Speaker did not acknowledge the receipt of Disqualification Petitions and also refused to accept the same sent by Post. The counsel further argued that a disqualification petition was once again filed on April 10 by E-mail  and that the same should be decided as early as possible as per Apex Court guidelines and the same cannot be put on hold for several months. The counsel sought directions to Speaker to decide on the disqualification petition of April 10 within a period of 3 months in terms of Xth Schedule of Constitution of India. Hearing the same, the judge posted the matter to April 29 for the response of the State.

2. Justice T. Vinod Kumar of Telangana High Court on Thursday heard the Criminal Petition filed by Chairman and managing director of ‘Namasthe Telangana’ seeking to quash the FIR filed against them on charges of publishing false news to defame the Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy. A complaint was lodged by B Mahesh Goud, MLC and Working President of Telangana Congress Committee, against Chairman and Managing director of ‘Namasthe Telangana’ for publishing an article on Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and former AP CM Chandrababu Naidu, FIR was also registered for the same for the offences of Statements conducing to public mischief. The news article discloses that CM Revanth Reddy and former AP CM Chandrababu Naidu convened at Begumpet Airport on March 7 and Chandrababu Naidu sought Revanth’s support for the upcoming Andhra Pradesh assembly elections. Senior Counsel B.S Prasad representing the petitioners, contended that this a tussle between political parties in which media/press is made a culprit, No one in the society was aggrieved expect the working president. The complaint filed by Mahesh Goud alleged that BRS party intending to create rumours through its own news paper to influence the common people, the senior counsel in reply to the said allegation stated that it is absolutely an assumption and the complaint does not attract any ingredients of the alleged section of Statements conducing to public mischief as they are mere assumption which does not come under the provision. Apart from that the mensrea is also absent in the complaint.  Journalism parlance is their routine, such cases are unhealthy for the press and it is duty of them to publish what has come to their notice to reach the public which is not uncommon, the senior counsel highlighted. The Chairman and managing director of the paper cannot be held responsible, the counsel argued. Due to paucity of time, the Judge adjourned the case to April 29.