‘No proof of party switch’: Telangana Speaker dismisses disqualification pleas against MLAs Kadiyam Srihari, Danam Nagender

Hyderabad: In a major legal and political development, Telangana Legislative Assembly Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar on Wednesday dismissed the disqualification petitions filed against MLAs Kadiyam Srihari (Station Ghanpur) and Danam Nagender (Khairatabad).

Close to all disqualification pleas

The Speaker ruled that there was no substantive evidence to prove that the two legislators had officially switched parties, effectively closing the loop on all 10 disqualification cases filed by the BRS.

The timing of the announcement is particularly significant, coming just 24 hours before a scheduled Supreme Court hearing on the matter. The apex court had previously set strict deadlines for the Speaker’s tribunal to resolve these cases, warning that the office does not enjoy ‘constitutional immunity’ in matters of the 10th Schedule.

‘Petitions were legally untenable’

Speaking to NewsMeter following the ruling, Kadiyam Srihari welcomed the decision and questioned the legal grounds of the BRS’s plea.

He pointed out a significant procedural oversight by the opposition leadership. “If there had been any instance of party defection, the party should have first issued a show-cause notice, which was never served to me,” Srihari told.

He further challenged the BRS high command, specifically questioning why BRS party chief KCR had not filed the petition in an official capacity. Despite their distance from the current BRS leadership, Srihari maintained that they remain BRS members in the Assembly records.

“We are 38 members and have sought time in the Assembly accordingly. We continue to remain in the BRS and are working for the people,” he said. He concluded by accusing the BRS leadership of hypocrisy, labelling them the ‘architects of political defections’ for their history of rewarding defectors with cabinet positions.

Dual ideology exposed, says BRS

The BRS has reacted with sharp indignation, describing the verdict as a subversion of constitutional values.

Speaking to NewsMeter, Quthbullapur MLA KP Vivekananda termed the Speaker’s decision a ‘blow to democracy’ and a direct hit to the spirit of the Anti-Defection Law.

Vivekananda turned the spotlight on the Congress national leadership, demanding a response from Rahul Gandhi.

“Rahul Gandhi, who advocated the ‘Pancha Nyaya Sutra’ on the defection of MLAs, must now respond to the developments unfolding in Congress-ruled Telangana,” Vivekananda told.

He alleged that the episode exposes the Congress party’s ‘dual ideology’ regarding political ethics. He asserted that if Congress is truly committed to the Constitution, these ‘defected’ MLAs should be removed from their positions.

He confirmed that the BRS would continue its legal battle to secure justice.

Mountains of evidence of defection, says BJP Bandi Sanjay

“The Speaker’s decision is a mockery of both the Constitution and democracy. A simple internet search provides mountains of evidence that these MLAs defected—from the Chief Minister publicly draping them in Congress scarves to the party even issuing a B-Form to a defector for the Lok Sabha polls. Just because the BJP won the Secunderabad seat doesn’t mean the evidence of betrayal has vanished. If defections are blessed instead of punished, it proves the Congress stands for ‘Anyaya,’ not ‘Nyaya.’ What message are we sending to the people of Telangana?” said Bandi Sanjay Kumar, BJP MP and Union minister, sharing his views from his X account.

The road to the Supreme Court

With Wednesday’s ruling, the Speaker has now cleared all 10 BRS-elected MLAs who aligned with the ruling Congress party over the last year.

Chronology of dismissals:

December 2025: 5 MLAs cleared (Tellam Venkat Rao, Bandla Krishna Mohan Reddy, T Prakash Goud, Gudem Mahipal Reddy and Arekapudi Gandhi).

January 15: 2 MLAs cleared (Pocharam Srinivas Reddy and Kale Yadaiah).

February 4: 1 MLA cleared (M Sanjay Kumar).

March 11: Final 2 MLAs cleared (Kadiyam Srihari and Danam Nagender).