Supreme Court Asks Telangana Speaker To Decide Remaining Disqualification Petitions In Two Weeks

The Supreme Court of India on Thursday (January 16) issued a last warning to the Speaker of the Telangana Legislative Assembly, directing him to decide the remaining disqualification petitions within two weeks in connection with the defection of ten MLAs from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi to the Indian National Congress.A bench comprising Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice AG Masih was hearing the compliance pursuant to the Court's July 31 order, wherein the Court had granted three months for the Speaker to decide on petitions seeking the disqualification of 10 BRS MLAs, who had allegedly crossed over to the Congress.Since the Speaker refused to act within the timeline, contempt petitions were filed. After a stern warning from the Court, the Speaker, in last December, decided seven petitions, by rejecting them. However, three others are still pending.Today, when the matter was taken up, Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Senior Advocate Mukul Rohagti (for State of Telangana) sought an adjournment for two weeks. However, Senior Advocate Dama Seshadri Naidu(for one of the petitioners) vehemently opposed. He submitted that, despite the Order, the majesty of the Court is not being upheld, and the Speaker continues to see adjournment. Singhvi said: "The first seven [petitions] are disposed of. The eighth is reserved for judgment. The last three, two weeks more, and we will do it. The Speaker went to the hospital for eye surgery, and the Secretary General also changed. It is little bit of an overlap."Interjecting, Naidu said: "They gave assurance that the Speaker is a tribunal, and it was reported in LiveLaw on the same day that within two weeks it will be disposed of. One of the ten MLAs having crossed the floor from my party, he contests from the ruling party as an MLA. He loses but still retains the MLA seat, and he says he belongs to my party. Its open and shut case, but the Tribunal has not touched it to date. How, they say, we need four or eight weeks."Naidu said that there is no sanctity given to the Court's order.Justice AG Masih: "He hasn't done much. He was given that time initially also at your assurance. And therefore also. We are giving you last opportunity now. Why didn't you do it in the meantime? You could have done so, there is an observation. We will not give you four weeks."BackgroundThree MLAs viz. Venkata Rao Tellam, Kadiyam Srihari, and Danam Nagender were elected on a BRS Ticket during the 2023 assembly polls, but defected to the Congress Party (ruling in Telangana). Questioning inaction of the Telangana Legislative Assembly Speaker for over 3 months, in deciding the disqualification pleas preferred against the MLAs who defected, BRS MLAs Kuna Pandu Vivekananda and Padi Kaushik Reddy, and BJP MLA Alleti Maheshwar Reddy, moved the Telangana High Court.The petitioners before the High Court contended that the delay in deciding of the disqualification petitions could give the ruling party a chance to enable more defections from BRS. Counsel representing the defecting MLAs and State, on the other hand, questioned the maintainability of the petitioners' writ petition, arguing that the Court lacked jurisdiction to issue a writ of mandamus against the Speaker to decide upon the disqualification pleas.On September 9, 2024 a Single bench of the High Court directed the Speaker of the State Legislative Assembly to fix a schedule of hearing within four weeks to decide upon the disqualification pleas. Against this judgment, the Telangana Legislative Assembly (through its Speaker) preferred a writ appeal.In November, 2024, the Division Bench of the High Court set aside the Single bench judgment and held that the Speaker of the State Legislative Assembly must decide the disqualification petitions within a reasonable time.Challenging the order of the Division bench (which set aside the direction to the Speaker to fix a schedule for hearing of the disqualification pleas within 4 weeks), MLA Padi Kaushik Reddy, and others, moved the Supreme Court. In July last year, the Supreme Court set aside the High Court Division Bench's order, and directed the Speaker to decide within three months.Case Title: PADI KAUSHIK REDDY Versus THE STATE OF TELANGANA AND ORS., SLP(C) No. 2353-2354/2025 (and connected cases)Click Here To Read/Download Order

Supreme Court Asks Telangana Speaker To Decide Remaining Disqualification Petitions In Two Weeks

Gursimran Kaur Bakshi

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