BRS leaders target Rahul Gandhi and Revanth Reddy over defections; Harish Rao demands fresh mandate from defected MLAs
Hyderabad, Sept 2026 : Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) Working President K.T. Rama Rao on Thursday welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Telangana High Court judgment disqualifying Danam Nagender as Khairatabad MLA, describing it as a “supreme slap” to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy.
The Supreme Court dismissed Nagender’s petition challenging his disqualification under the anti-defection law, finding no reason to interfere with the High Court’s judgment. A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant also comprised Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana.
Nagender had won the Khairatabad Assembly constituency on a BRS ticket in the 2023 Telangana elections before switching to the Congress. While still an MLA, he contested the 2024 Lok Sabha election from Secunderabad as a Congress candidate. The Telangana High Court had subsequently disqualified him with effect from April 23, 2024, and declared the Khairatabad seat vacant.
Reacting to the Supreme Court verdict, Rama Rao said Nagender’s attempt to challenge the disqualification had failed. He alleged that Rahul Gandhi and Revanth Reddy believed they could “steal a mandate through defections and hide behind the Speaker”.
Rama Rao also alleged that the verdict exposed attempts to protect defections through the office of the Assembly Speaker. Looking ahead to the proposed Khairatabad by-election, he said voters would soon deliver their verdict on what he described as “three years of betrayal, broken promises and misrule”.
In a further political message, the BRS working president wrote, “One wicket down, more to follow soon,” while directing a personal attack at Rahul Gandhi in his social media post.
BRS Deputy Leader in the Telangana Assembly T. Harish Rao also welcomed the Supreme Court ruling and linked it to Congress’ campaign around constitutional issues.
Harish Rao said Rahul Gandhi frequently raises the slogan “Samvidhan Bachao” but argued that the Danam Nagender case presented a test of the Congress leader’s position on constitutional principles.
He demanded that Rahul Gandhi call for the resignation of other MLAs who had defected to the Congress and seek fresh mandates from voters. Harish Rao argued that constitutional morality should apply equally to political conduct at the state and national levels.
He further questioned whether “Samvidhan Bachao” represented a constitutional commitment or was merely a political slogan, alleging a gap between Rahul Gandhi’s public statements and the Congress’ conduct in Telangana.
The Supreme Court verdict brings the legal challenge over Nagender’s disqualification to an end and leaves the Khairatabad Assembly seat vacant, paving the way for a by-election.
