Telangana HC sets aside Speaker’s order, declares Khairatabad MLA Danam Nagender disqualified as member of Legislative Assembly

The Telangana High Court on Friday (September 18, 2026) set aside the order of Telangana Assembly Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar, which dismissed petitions seeking Khairatabad MLA Danam Nagender’s disqualification. The bench headed by the Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh declared that ‘Danam Nagender stands disqualified from April 23, 2024 as a member of Telangana Legislative Assembly having contested from Secunderabad Lok Sabha on Congress ticket in 2024, after getting elected as MLA as BRS candidate the previous year.

The bench of the Chief Justice and Justice G.M. Mohiuddin pronounced the verdict having reserved orders on August 21 in two writ petitions, one filed by BRS MLA of Huzurabad Padi Kaushik Reddy and another by BJP MLA Alleti Maheshwar Reddy of Nirmal. They wanted the Speaker’s order, issued on March 11, to be quashed and set aside. They contended that Mr. Nagender had to be disqualified as MLA as per paragraph 2 (1) (a) of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution since he won as MLA on BRS ticket.

The 10 MLAs

‘Without resigning from the BRS party from which he got elected as MLA in December of 2023, he contested on Congress ticket as MP from Secunderabad in May of 2024,’ the two petitioners argued. In addition to Mr. Nagender, nine other BRS MLAs eventually switched loyalty to Congress party during March-August of 2024.They included, Kadiyam Srihari (Station Ghanpur), Pocharam Srinivas Reddy (Banswada), Tellam Venkat Rao (Bhadrachalam), M. Sanjay Kumar (Jagitial), Arekapudi Gandhi (Serilingampally), T. Prakash Goud (Rajendranagar), B. Krishna Mohan Reddy (Gadwal), Kale Yadaiah (Chevella) and Gudem Mahipal Reddy (Patancheru). In April of 2024, the BRS party moved the High Court initially contending that the Speaker’s office was not acting upon its petitions seeking disqualification of Mr. Nagender and two other BRS MLAs who joined the Congress.

A single judge of the High Court on September 9 of 2024, directed the Speaker’s office to fix a schedule to hear disqualification petitions of the BRS MLAs. Challenging this order, the Speaker’s office went for an appeal. On November 27 the same year, a Division Bench of the High Court set aside the single-judge order in the matter. Questioning the Division Bench’s order, the BRS party moved the Supreme Court.

On July 31, 2025, the Apex Court set aside the Division Bench order and directed the Speaker’s office to adjudicate the disqualification petitions within three months. The Speaker’s office eventually dismissed all the disqualification petitions pertaining to the 10 MLAs. Challenging these orders of the Speaker’s office, the BRS party filed writ petitions in the High Court against nine out of the 10 MLAs.

For some reasons, the party did not file plea against MLA Mahipal Reddy of Patancheru. BJP MLA Maheshwar Reddy separately filed another petition against Mr. Nagender. On August 21, the bench comprising the Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice G.M. Mohiuddin reserved orders in case of Mr. Nagender and continued to hear the arguments in the pleas against the remaining eight MLAs.