Writ in HC seeks disqualification of Danam Nagender

Hyderabad: Bolla Boina Raju of Gandhi Thatha Nagar, Khairatabad, on Wednesday filed a writ petition in the Telangana High Court seeking disqualification of Danam Nagender, Khairatabad MLA, for defecting to the Congress without resigning to the BRS party.

The petitioner sought a direction to the Speaker of State Assembly to disqualify Nagender; to this effect he had also submitted a representation dated March 23 through e-mail to the Speaker, which is still pending.

Raju contended that Nagender got elected as MLA on BRS ticket from Khairatabad constituency on December 3, 2023. As per explanation to para 2(1) of the X schedule of the Constitution, he is deemed to be MLA of BRS on the date of nomination.

Contrary to the above, he met TPCC president, AICC in-charge for Telangana and the Deputy CM along with other Congress leaders on March 154 in the presence of AICC general secretary and other senior leaders and expressed his desire to join the party with an intent to contest the ensuing Lok Sabha elections.

Accordingly, Nagendar was permitted to join the Congress on March 17 and contest the LS elections from the Secunderabad constituency. Now that he has joined the Congress and will contest the elections, there will be a lot of confusion among voters in the Secunderabad constituency to vote for him as he has not yet resigned from the BRS.

‘The defection of Nagender disqualifies him to continue being MLA on account of defection, as mandated in para 2 (1) of the X schedule to the Constitution, which is a breach of faith and an unprincipled act’, the petitioner contended.

The State Assembly Speaker, the Election Commissioner, the EC, New Delhi and Nagender are the respondents in the petition.

The petition may come up for hearing before Justice CV Bhaskar Reddy on March 28.