Danam Nagender's disqualification a 'supreme slap' to Congress: KTR

BRS's KTR called the SC's upholding of Danam Nagender's disqualification a 'supreme slap' to Congress. Nagender, who defected from BRS to Congress, welcomed the verdict and will contest the by-poll. BRS and BJP hailed the decision.

Launching an attack on the Congress leadership, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president KT Rama Rao on Thursday termed the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the disqualification of MLA Danam Nagender as a "Supreme slap" to Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy.

Reacting to the apex court's dismissal of Nagender's petition challenging the Telangana High Court’s ruling, KTR accused the Congress top brass of attempting to subvert democratic mandates by engineering defections. Taking to social media platform X, KTR wrote, "Supreme slap to Rahul Gandhi & Revanth Reddy. Danam Nagender’s attempt to escape disqualification has been rejected by the Supreme Court, upholding his disqualification by the High Court under the anti-defection law." The BRS leader further slammed the Congress leadership for alleged political manoeuvring through constitutional offices, stating, "Both Rahul Gandhi and Revanth Reddy thought they could steal a mandate through defections and hide behind the Speaker." Exuding confidence ahead of the impending by-poll in the Khairatabad Assembly segment, KTR added, "The people of Khairatabad will soon give their verdict on three years of betrayal, broken promises and misrule."

The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed the petition filed by Nagender challenging the Telangana High Court's order that disqualified him as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) and declared the Khairatabad seat vacant. Nagender had won the seat on a BRS ticket in the November 2023 Assembly elections, but subsequently switched allegiance to the ruling Congress and contested the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from Secunderabad on a Congress ticket.

Nagender Responds to Disqualification

Meanwhile, Nagender exuded confidence about retaining the Khairatabad Assembly constituency after the apex court upheld the Telangana High Court's decision to disqualify him under the anti-defection law. "We welcome the verdict of the Supreme Court. We will face the elections. Facing elections is not new to me. Definitely, I will fight and will come out with flying colours," Nagender said

Hitting back at the opposition Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for targeting him, Nagender remarked, "They don't have any right to criticise me. They have to look at what they did earlier."

BRS, BJP Welcome Verdict

Reacting to the verdict, senior BRS leader Jeevan Reddy demanded political accountability from the Chief Minister. "The Supreme Court decision should be welcomed by all democratic people. Revanth Reddy should have some shame now. Elections will come for all 10 seats. They are suppressing the voice of the people of Telangana. Also, earlier, there was a 24-hour power supply; now it is limited to only a few hours. Who is responsible for all this?" Reddy said.

The BJP also hailed the apex court’s decision as a validation of constitutional norms. BJP leader and Advocate Karunasagar said, "The Supreme Court's dismissal of Danam Nagender's plea challenging the High Court order is a very welcome move. The High Court of Telangana has found him liable for defection and disqualified him from the post of MLA and also declared his post vacant. The 10th Schedule of the Constitution is not just a political suggestion, but it is a clear indication that if any person being elected as MLA defects from the mandate, the 10th Schedule of the Constitution comes into play." (ANI)

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