HYDERABAD: Justice B Vijaysen Reddy of the Telangana High Court on Monday issued notices to key officials and parties involved in a writ petition filed by BRS MLA Padi Kaushik Reddy seeking disqualification of Danam Nagender as MLA from Khairatabad for switching parties to the Congress.
The court issued notices to the principal secretary, Law and Legislative department, Assembly Secretary, the Chief Election Commissioner, and Nagender, asking them to respond by April 25, 2024.
Gandra Mohan Rao, senior counsel appearing for Kaushik Reddy, informed the court that his client has the locus to file the writ petition as he was an MLA of the BRS. He highlighted that the Speaker of the Assembly has been inaccessible, with members not permitted to enter his chamber to submit disqualification petitions against MLAs who have switched to the ruling Congress. Mohan Rao stressed the urgency of the matter, citing Supreme Court precedents mandating the Speaker to decide on disqualification petitions within a stipulated time frame.