The Telangana High Court has instructed ten MLAs, who reportedly defected from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) to the ruling Congress party after winning the 2023 Assembly elections on a BRS ticket, to submit their counter-affidavits within three weeks. This directive came in response to petitions challenging the dismissal of disqualification cases against these legislators by the Speaker, Gaddam Prasad Kumar.
The case was heard by a bench comprising Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice G M Mohiuddin. The court had previously issued notices to the ten MLAs, prompting their legal representatives to request additional time to prepare the necessary documents. The bench allowed a three-week period for the MLAs to submit their counter-affidavits and granted another three weeks for the petitioners to respond. They indicated plans to reconvene for the hearing after the summer recess.
One of the petitioners’ attorneys raised concerns over potential delays, urging the court to establish a strict deadline for the submission of the counters. The lawyer referenced previous experiences where time extensions led to significant delays, stating, “After the Supreme Court mandated a three-month timeframe for disqualification cases, the state and Speaker took an entire year. There is a risk that some might not file their counters and will request further extensions.”
In response, the bench mandated that the counters be filed by May 6 “without fail” and agreed to address the issue on that same date.
The BRS has criticized the Speaker’s dismissal of the disqualification petitions, claiming it undermines the anti-defection law by citing insufficient evidence. MLA Padi Kaushik Reddy from BRS had previously approached the Supreme Court, citing the Speaker’s inaction regarding the disqualification petitions against the ten MLAs who allegedly shifted their allegiance to Congress.
In a ruling in July 2025, the Supreme Court instructed the Speaker to resolve the petitions within a three-month timeframe. By February 2026, the court provided a ‘final opportunity’, compelling Gaddam Prasad Kumar to decisively address the issue within three weeks. However, from December 2025 to March 2026, the Speaker dismissed the petitions, attributing the decisions to a ‘lack of conclusive documentary evidence’.
