HYDERABAD: The Supreme Court has directed the Speaker of Telangana State Legislative Assembly to take a decision in three months on the petitions for disqualification of 10 BRS MLAs, who defected to the ruling Congress party in the state.
A division bench led by Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai on Thursday pronounced orders on the petitions filed by Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president K.T. Rama Rao, some other BRS MLAs and BJP floor leader in Assembly A. Maheshwar Reddy.
The Supreme Court allowed the pleas filed by BRS leaders seeking directions to the Speaker of the Telangana Legislative Assembly to decide expeditiously the disqualification petitions.
The apex court directed the Speaker to decide the disqualification petitions as expeditiously as possible and in any case within three months.
The bench also set aside the order of the Telangana High Court that the court can’t set a time limit for the Speaker to decide on the disqualification petitions.
According to the counsel for the BRS leaders, the bench also directed the Speaker of the Telangana Assembly not to allow any MLA to protract the process of disqualification. In case any MLA attempts to protract the proceedings, the Speaker has to draw an adverse inference against them.
“The Honourable Supreme Court also clarified that the Speaker doesn’t have any Constitutional privilege to decide this case and that he is as good as a tribunal, ” said Mohit K. Rao, who appeared on behalf of the BRS leaders