The Telangana High Court has issued notices to BRS MLAs T Venkat Rao and K Srihari, who recently defected to the Congress. This move by the ruling party to weaken the main opposition by poaching its MLAs in the upcoming Lok Sabha election may face delays as the deadline for the polls in the state is May 13.
Justice B Vijaysen Reddy of the High Court directed the two BRS MLAs to respond by June 5. BRS MLA K P Vivekanand has requested the Speaker to act on disqualification petitions sent on April 10. The court was informed that the petitions reached the Speaker’s office and acknowledgments were provided to the petitioner’s counsel. Another petition seeking disqualification of BRS MLA Danam Nagender is also pending before the court.
Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy reportedly held secret meetings with BRS MLAs to invite them to join the Congress. However, the three BRS MLAs already face legal issues as petitions against them are pending in the High Court. This has led to hesitation among the MLAs to join the Congress due to concerns about their political careers being negatively impacted if courts rule against their defection. Party leadership is concerned that these developments may affect their chances of winning in certain Lok Sabha segments.
