The Supreme Court has asked the Telangana Assembly Speaker to submit a status report within two weeks on disqualification pleas against BRS MLAs who defected to Congress. The court warned that this is the final opportunity and non-compliance will invite serious consequences.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Telangana Legislative Assembly Speaker to inform the court within two weeks about the present status of the disqualification proceedings against Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLAs who allegedly defected to the ruling Congress party.
A Bench consisting of Justices Sanjay Karol and A G Masih granted two weeks’ time to the Speaker to submit a detailed status report explaining what steps have been taken so far in deciding the disqualification petitions. The Speaker had earlier requested eight weeks’ time to complete the proceedings.
Senior advocates Abhishek Singhvi and Mukul Rohatgi, who appeared on behalf of the Speaker, informed the court that in seven out of the total cases, orders had already been passed, while in one remaining case, the order had been reserved.
Explaining the delay, Singhvi told the Bench,
“The speaker could not decide all the disqualification pleas as he had to undergo eye surgery,”
and once again sought eight weeks’ additional time to conclude the remaining proceedings.
However, the request was strongly opposed by senior advocate Dama Seshadri Naidu, who appeared for the BRS MLAs. He argued that repeated extensions could not be allowed, especially when earlier directions of the Supreme Court had not been complied with.
Naidu told the court,
“The speaker was granted three-months time to decide the disqualification pleas but that period is over long back,”
and opposed the grant of any further time.
Taking note of the submissions, the Bench made it clear that it was granting only a final opportunity to the Speaker. The court warned that failure to comply this time would invite serious consequences. It accordingly directed the Speaker to file a status report before the next date of hearing.
Earlier, on November 17, 2025, the Supreme Court had issued a contempt notice to the Telangana Assembly Speaker for failing to comply with its directions to decide the disqualification pleas against 10 BRS MLAs who were accused of defecting to the Congress party.
The controversy dates back to July 31 last year, when the apex court had directed the Speaker to decide the disqualification petitions within a period of three months.
The court had expressed strong displeasure over non-compliance and had described the failure to follow its directions as the “grossest kind of contempt” while issuing notices to the Speaker and other concerned parties on petitions filed by BRS leaders.
The Supreme Court had also issued notice on a separate plea filed by the office of the Speaker, which sought an extension of eight more weeks to decide the pending disqualification pleas.
The contempt proceedings arise from the Supreme Court’s July 31 judgment delivered in a batch of writ petitions filed by BRS leaders K T Rama Rao, Padi Kaushik Reddy, and K O Vivekanand.
In its observations, the top court reiterated an important constitutional position, stating that the Speaker functions as a tribunal while deciding disqualification petitions under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution.
The court further clarified that, in such matters, the Speaker does not enjoy “constitutional immunity”.
The Tenth Schedule of the Constitution contains provisions relating to disqualification of legislators on the ground of defection, which is aimed at preventing political instability caused by elected representatives switching parties after elections.
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