Supreme Court slams Telangana CM Reddy for ‘mocking’ anti-defection law-OxBig News Network

The Supreme Court on Wednesday took strong exception to Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy’s alleged statement in the state assembly that there would be no byelections even if the members of opposition BRS switched sides to the ruling Congress.

“If this is said on the floor of the House, your Hon’ble CM is making a mockery of the 10th Schedule of the Constitution (Anti-Defection Law),” a bench of Justice BR Gavai and Justice AG Masih said.

While hearing BRS MLAs’ pleas against alleged delay on the part of Telangana Assembly Speaker in deciding disqualification petitions in respect of party MLAs who defected to the ruling Congress, the top court also asked the Telangana Legislative Assembly Speaker why he took about 10 months to issue notices on disqualification petitions against BRS MLAs who defected to the Congress.

“If the Speaker does not act at all, then the courts in this country — which not only have powers but also a duty as a guardian of the Constitution — would be powerless?”

One of the pleas challenged the November 2024 order of the Telangana High Court on the disqualification of the three MLAs, while another one was on the seven remaining legislators who defected.

On behalf of the Speaker, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi said the first disqualification petition was filed on March 18, 2024 followed by two other petitions filed on April 2 and April 8 in that year.

As the bench asked about the time taken in issuing notice on the disqualification petitions, Rohatgi referred to the pendency of matter before the high court. He said the Speaker issued the notice on the disqualification petitions on January 16.

“If they had filed a petition (in the high court) within two weeks, what took you 10 months to issue the first notice?” the bench asked.

Rohatgi said notices were perhaps not issued on the disqualification petitions as the matter was pending in the high court.

“Then why did you issue notice when we are seized of the matter? Why did you issue the notice? Should we now issue contempt?” Justice Gavai asked.

“You found it appropriate not to proceed further during the pendency of the proceedings before the high court. You found it appropriate to proceed when the matter was sub-judice before the Supreme Court,” the bench told Rohatgi.

As arguments remained inconclusive, the matter would be further heard on April 3.

A division bench of the Telangana High Court in November last year said the legislative assembly speaker must decide the disqualification petitions against the three MLAs within a “reasonable time”.

The verdict had come on appeals against the September 9, 2024 order of a single judge who had directed the Secretary of the Telangana Assembly to place the petition seeking the disqualifications before the Speaker for fixing a schedule of hearing within four weeks.