Hyderabad, Sep 18: The Telangana High Court on Friday disqualified Khairatabad MLA Danam Nagender under the anti-defection law and set aside Assembly Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar’s decision rejecting the disqualification petitions against him.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice G. Mohiuddin ruled that Nagender stands disqualified with effect from April 23, 2024, under Paragraph 2(1)(a) of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution. The court also declared the Khairatabad Assembly seat vacant.
Nagender was elected from Khairatabad on a BRS ticket in the 2023 Assembly elections, later joined the Congress and contested the 2024 Lok Sabha election from Secunderabad on a Congress ticket, where he lost to BJP’s G. Kishan Reddy.
The case was filed by BJP MLA Aleti Maheshwar Reddy and BRS MLA Padi Kaushik Reddy, challenging the Speaker’s decision to reject the disqualification petitions. The High Court directed that its order be communicated to the Assembly Speaker and the Election Commission.
The verdict means Nagender loses his Assembly membership and the Khairatabad seat falls vacant.
