Supreme Court Upholds Disqualification of MLA Danam Nagender

The Supreme Court of India dismissed a plea by Danam Nagender on September 24, 2026, upholding his disqualification from the Telangana Legislative Assembly. The court affirmed a Telangana High Court ruling that Nagender violated the anti-defection law under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution by contesting the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from the Secunderabad constituency on a Congress ticket while serving as a Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLA.

During the proceedings, the court rejected Nagender's argument that his return to the BRS—described by his lawyer as 'ghar wapasi'—could restore his seat. Justice Joymalya Bagchi noted that while a politician might be brought back into a party, they cannot be automatically brought back into the House, characterizing the party-hopping as a case of 'Aaya Ram, Gaya Ram, phir aaya Ram.' The ruling overturned a March 11 decision by Assembly Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar to dismiss disqualification requests filed by BJP MLA Alleti Maheshwar Reddy and BRS MLA P Kaushik Reddy.

The verdict leaves the Khairatabad Assembly seat vacant and necessitates a by-election. Nagender stated he welcomes the judgment and is ready to face the electorate, though he declined to specify which party he will represent. K.T. Rama Rao, Working President of the BRS, called the verdict a "supreme slap" to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, alleging the Congress leadership attempted to "steal a mandate" by protecting defections through the Speaker's office.