SC gives Telangana speaker 3 months to decide on BRS MLAs' disqualification

The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the Telangana assembly speaker to decide within three months the disqualification petitions against 10 BRS MLAs, who had switched allegiance to the ruling Congress.

Observing that political defections have been a matter of national discourse and have power to disrupt democracy if not curbed, a bench headed by Chief Justice B R Gavai allowed an appeal filed by Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader Padi Kaushik Reddy seeking a directing to the speaker to expeditiously decide disqualification petitions against the BRS MLAs.

The bench set aside the November 22, 2024 decision of the Telangana High Court's division bench which had interfered with a prior order of a single judge.

We have referred to various parliamentary speeches, including those by Rajesh Pilot and Devendra Nath Munshi, to emphasise that entrusting disqualification proceedings to the speaker were aimed at avoiding delays that may occur before courts, the CJI said while reading out the judgement.

The judgement asked the speaker not to allow the MLAs to prolong the disqualification proceedings.

It asked the speaker to draw adverse inferences if the MLAs protracted proceedings.

The top court said the assembly speaker acts as a tribunal while deciding pleas for defections and hence, the office does not enjoy constitutional immunity.

The detailed judgement is awaited.

The top court had reserved the verdict on April 3.