India
BRS prepares for legal battles against leaders who switched sides | India News – Times of India
NEW DELHI: After losing a number of legislators to Congress In a steady stream before and after the recent parliamentary elections and without winning a single Lok Sabha seat from Telengana, Bharat Rashtra Samithy (BRS) is trying to fight back by preparing for a legal battle against its legislators who have switched sides.
Criticizing Congress for the “unconstitutional” to overflowBRS Working Chairman KT Rama Rao (KTR) said on Tuesday that his party, in addition to approaching all constitutional authorities, plans to file a petition with the Supreme Court against the defected members.
Accusing Congress of “walking an unconstitutional path while talking about saving the Constitution“KTR, son of party leader and former Telengana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao, said “the manner in which the Congress is facilitating desertions from the BRS camp in Telengana is against the Anti-Desertion Act (1985),” while talking to reporters on Tuesday.
Now that Rajya Sabha has only four MPs left, the BRS leadership plans to approach the President, the Vice President who is also the Chairman of Rajya Sabha, the Election Commission and finally the Supreme Court on the issue of defection. “We will meet all those who are guardians of the Constitution,” KTR told reporters here on Tuesday.
The BRS’s aggressive move comes in response to a recent spate of defections in which seven of its MLAs, six MLCs and one Rajya Sabha MP transferred their loyalty to the Congress. The Telengana party now has 31 MLAs, 22 MLCs and four Rajya Sabha members.
Asked about inductions into her fold, from other parties, including the Congress, when BRS was the ruling party in Telengana for two consecutive terms from 2014, KTR tried to differentiate between the two changes of sides. Justifying the changes in BRS, he said, “There is a difference between merger and defection. There is a law against defection. When leaders joined us, it was merger, not defection, which is permissible under the Constitution.”
KTR even said that BRS will maintain equal distance from Congress and BJP at the national level and take a stand in the Rajya Sabha on the basis of specific issues.
But now that there is a Congress government in Telengana, BRS is part of the opposition in the state where it plans to revive itself. So the party has every reason to run with the BJP and maintain itself.
The BRS Leader urged “all victims of the BJP and Congress to join BRS in the fight against defections.”
Pointing out that a petition against the defected BRS members is already pending in the Telangana High Court, he noted that as per a 2020 Supreme Court order, the Speaker of the Assembly has three months to decide on the status of the defected party members. “If the Speaker does not do justice, we will approach the Supreme Court. We are here for the last two days to consult with legal experts,” he added.
Reflecting on the BRS’s recent election defeat, KTR acknowledged that there were gaps in the party’s connection with voters. “We have implemented many welfare schemes, but it seems that we could not communicate them effectively to the people,” he said, taking responsibility for the loss.
Criticizing Congress for the “unconstitutional” to overflowBRS Working Chairman KT Rama Rao (KTR) said on Tuesday that his party, in addition to approaching all constitutional authorities, plans to file a petition with the Supreme Court against the defected members.
Accusing Congress of “walking an unconstitutional path while talking about saving the Constitution“KTR, son of party leader and former Telengana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao, said “the manner in which the Congress is facilitating desertions from the BRS camp in Telengana is against the Anti-Desertion Act (1985),” while talking to reporters on Tuesday.
Now that Rajya Sabha has only four MPs left, the BRS leadership plans to approach the President, the Vice President who is also the Chairman of Rajya Sabha, the Election Commission and finally the Supreme Court on the issue of defection. “We will meet all those who are guardians of the Constitution,” KTR told reporters here on Tuesday.
The BRS’s aggressive move comes in response to a recent spate of defections in which seven of its MLAs, six MLCs and one Rajya Sabha MP transferred their loyalty to the Congress. The Telengana party now has 31 MLAs, 22 MLCs and four Rajya Sabha members.
Asked about inductions into her fold, from other parties, including the Congress, when BRS was the ruling party in Telengana for two consecutive terms from 2014, KTR tried to differentiate between the two changes of sides. Justifying the changes in BRS, he said, “There is a difference between merger and defection. There is a law against defection. When leaders joined us, it was merger, not defection, which is permissible under the Constitution.”
KTR even said that BRS will maintain equal distance from Congress and BJP at the national level and take a stand in the Rajya Sabha on the basis of specific issues.
But now that there is a Congress government in Telengana, BRS is part of the opposition in the state where it plans to revive itself. So the party has every reason to run with the BJP and maintain itself.
The BRS Leader urged “all victims of the BJP and Congress to join BRS in the fight against defections.”
Pointing out that a petition against the defected BRS members is already pending in the Telangana High Court, he noted that as per a 2020 Supreme Court order, the Speaker of the Assembly has three months to decide on the status of the defected party members. “If the Speaker does not do justice, we will approach the Supreme Court. We are here for the last two days to consult with legal experts,” he added.
Reflecting on the BRS’s recent election defeat, KTR acknowledged that there were gaps in the party’s connection with voters. “We have implemented many welfare schemes, but it seems that we could not communicate them effectively to the people,” he said, taking responsibility for the loss.
