The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the disqualification of Danam Nagender as a member of the Telangana Legislative Assembly, ruling that his decision to contest the 2024 Lok Sabha election on a Congress ticket while being a Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS) MLA attracted the anti-defection provisions of the Constitution. The court dismissed Nagender’s challenge to the Telangana high court order that had disqualified him with effect from April 23, 2024.A bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and comprising justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana said there was no ground to interfere with the high court judgment.
SC finds no ground to interfere with HC order
During the hearing, the bench questioned Nagender’s argument that his subsequent return to the BRS could save his assembly membership. “How will your ghar wapasi (home coming) to your party save you? When an act of defection is done, you lose the membership of the House. You may be brought back to the party, but you have to leave the House,” the bench observed.
“Your situation is not Aaya Ram, Gaya Ram. It is Phir Aaya Ram. You had a fixed deposit (FD) in your MLA seat and a share market investment in MP seat. It is a bumper draw you took. Now the FD stands forfeited,” it added.
Also read: SC to hear Telangana BRS MLA’s plea against disqualification on September 23
Bench rejects ‘ghar wapasi’ defence
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Nagender, argued that the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution permits a member to voluntarily give up membership and that Nagender had since joined back the BRS. The bench, however, pointed out that the provision cited by Rohatgi applied to a member voting against the party whip and not to voluntarily giving up party membership under Paragraph 2(1)(a) of the Tenth Schedule.
{{/usCountry}}Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Nagender, argued that the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution permits a member to voluntarily give up membership and that Nagender had since joined back the BRS. The bench, however, pointed out that the provision cited by Rohatgi applied to a member voting against the party whip and not to voluntarily giving up party membership under Paragraph 2(1)(a) of the Tenth Schedule.
{{/usCountry}}The BRS opposed Nagender’s plea, disputing his claim that the party had condoned his action. It was also pointed out that it was a BRS MLA who had sought his disqualification.
The bench told Rohatgi: “Your party may be kind to you and even send you to Rajya Sabha. You can even contest and even become CM, who knows. But the Speaker may not be kind to you.”
The court subsequently dismissed Nagender’s petition and upheld the High Court order.
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Nagender’s BRS return came after Congress stint
Nagender was elected from Khairatabad in the November 2023 Telangana assembly elections on a BRS ticket. He joined the Congress in March 2024 and later contested the Secunderabad Lok Sabha election on a Congress ticket while continuing as an MLA. He was among 10 BRS MLAs who moved to the Congress after the 2023 assembly elections.
BRS MLA Padi Kaushik Reddy and BJP legislature party leader Alleti Maheshwar Reddy had approached the Telangana assembly Speaker seeking Nagender’s disqualification, arguing that his decision to contest the Lok Sabha election on a Congress ticket amounted to voluntarily giving up membership of the BRS. Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar dismissed the disqualification petitions on March 11, 2026. The BRS and BJP subsequently approached the Telangana High Court challenging the Speaker’s decision.
Also read: BRS will not change even after 1,000 years: K Kavitha
High Court had disqualified Nagender from April 2024
On September 18, a division bench of Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and justice GM Mohiuddin set aside the Speaker’s order and disqualified Nagender under Paragraph 2(1)(a) of the Tenth Schedule. The court held that he stood disqualified from April 23, 2024, when he contested the Secunderabad parliamentary election as a Congress candidate while being a BRS MLA. It also held that the Khairatabad assembly seat had consequently fallen vacant.
The high court declined Nagender’s request to keep its order in abeyance to enable him to approach the Supreme Court. He subsequently challenged the order before the top court, which dismissed his plea on Thursday.
Also read: 22 BRS MLAs suspended from Telangana Assembly over ‘disrupting’ proceedings
Nagender says he will return to Assembly
After the Supreme Court dismissed his plea, Nagender said he was confident of returning to the assembly and claimed he continued to enjoy the support of voters in Khairatabad.
“I expected this when I contested the Lok Sabha poll. There is nothing wrong in fighting legally. I thought I would get relief under the Tenth Schedule. The top court said I can contest the elections again,” he said.
Nagender said his political strength lay in his connection with voters. “I have served people by going to every house. If you ask the people about me, you will know what I am,” he added.
BJP MLA Alleti Maheshwar Reddy welcomed the Supreme Court order, describing it as a “victory for the Constitution”. He also demanded that MLAs who had switched parties resign and seek fresh mandates through by-elections.
BRS working president KT Rama Rao described the verdict as a “supreme slap” to Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Revanth Reddy. He alleged that the two leaders had sought to “steal a mandate through defections” and believed defected legislators could be protected through the Speaker.