The Supreme Court on January 16 came down heavily on the Speaker of the Telangana Legislative Assembly for prolonged delays in deciding disqualification petitions against MLAs who defected from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) to the Congress party.
Issuing what it termed a last opportunity, the Court directed the Speaker to decide the remaining disqualification cases within two weeks, warning that continued inaction could invite serious consequences.
A Bench comprising Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice AG Masih was hearing the matter in connection with the alleged defection of ten BRS MLAs to the ruling Congress in Telangana.
Court dissatisfied with repeated delays
The Bench was reviewing compliance with its July 31 order, which had granted the Speaker three months to decide the disqualification petitions. With no decision taken within the stipulated period, contempt petitions were filed.
When the case was taken up on January 16, senior advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi (for the Speaker) and Mukul Rohatgi (for the State of Telangana) sought a further adjournment of two weeks.
This was strongly opposed by senior advocate Dama Seshadri Naidu, appearing for one of the petitioners, who argued that repeated adjournments were undermining the authority of the Supreme Court.
Singhvi informed the Bench that seven petitions had already been decided, the eighth was reserved for judgment, and only two more weeks were required for the remaining cases. He cited the Speaker’s eye surgery and a change in the Assembly Secretary General as reasons for the delay.
Rejecting the explanation, the Court expressed clear displeasure. Justice AG Masih remarked that the Speaker “hasn’t done much” despite repeated assurances and cautioned that the Court would not grant four more weeks, making it clear that this was the final chance.
Background of the case:
The dispute stems from the 2023 Telangana Assembly elections, after which ten MLAs elected on BRS tickets defected to the Congress, triggering disqualification petitions. BRS MLAs Kuna Pandu Vivekananda and Padi Kaushik Reddy, along with BJP MLA Alleti Maheshwar Reddy, approached the Telangana High Court, alleging that the Speaker’s inaction was enabling further defections.
While a Single Judge in September 2024 directed the Speaker to fix a hearing schedule within four weeks, the order was set aside by a Division Bench in November, which called for a decision within a “reasonable time”. The petitioners then moved the Supreme Court, which in July last year set aside the Division Bench ruling and imposed a three-month deadline on the Speaker—now breached.
Reiterating its displeasure, the Supreme Court has now directed the Speaker to file an affidavit within two weeks, explaining the action taken on the disqualification petitions. The matter has been posted for further hearing after two weeks.
