SC cancels MLC nominations of Prof Kodandaram and Ameer Ali Khan

Hyderabad: The Supreme Court annulled the nominations of Professor Kodandaram and Ameer Ali Khan as Members of the Legislative Council (MLCs) in Telangana, acting on a petition filed by Sravan Dasoju and K Satyanarayana.

The final judgement will be delivered on September 17. The case threw light on the role of the governor under Article 171(5) and the extent of their power to act independently of the State Cabinet’s advice regarding nominations for the Legislative Council.

Telangana Governor cleared the names of the two members nominated by the Congress party.

Breakdown of the nominations and the governor’s rejection

In July 2023, the then-ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government in Telangana recommended the names of Dasoju Sravan Kumar and Kurra Satyanarayana for the two MLC seats under the governor’s quota.

In September 2023, the then-governor, Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan, rejected their nominations.

Her reasoning was that the candidates had political backgrounds and did not qualify as eminent persons in the fields of arts, literature, science or social service as required by Article 171(5) of the Constitution. She also noted that the government’s recommendation lacked sufficient details about their credentials in these specific fields.

The subsequent HC case and new nominations

Sravan Dasoju and K Satyanarayana challenged the governor’s rejection in the Telangana High Court, arguing that the governor was bound to act on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers.

In a subsequent turn of events, the BRS government lost the Assembly elections, and the Congress party came to power in January 2024. The new Congress government recommended new names for the two MLC seats: Prof Kodandaram and Amer Ali Khan.

The Telangana High Court, in its verdict in March 2024, sided with the original petitioners (Dasoju and Satyanarayana). The court quashed both the governor’s order rejecting the BRS nominees and the subsequent notification of the Congress government appointing Kodandaram and Khan.

The High Court’s ruling emphasised that while the governor could ask the Council of Ministers to reconsider their recommendation, they did not have the power to outright reject the nominations.

The court’s decision was a significant statement on the limited power of the Governor in such matters.

Supreme Court’s intervention

The Congress government and its newly nominated MLCs, Kodandaram and Khan, appealed the High Court’s decision to the Supreme Court.

In an interim order, the Supreme Court stayed the High Court’s judgment, allowing Kodandaram and Khan to be sworn in as MLCs, but with the condition that their appointments would be subject to the final outcome of the case.

The recent Supreme Court decision on Wednesday, August 13, has now cancelled the nominations of Kodandaram and Khan. However, the final verdict on the entire matter, including whether the governor’s initial rejection of Dasoju and Satyanarayana was valid, is still pending.

September 17 final judgement

The fresh picks for the two seats will now wait until the Supreme Court delivers its final judgment on September 17.