Tamilisai Soundararajan has opted to take no action on the state government's proposals to fill Legislative Council vacancies under the Governor's quota.
Published Jan 17, 2024 | 9:57 PM ⚊ Updated Jan 17, 2024 | 9:59 PM
Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan. (Supplied)
Finally, there is a glimmer of hope for the beleaguered BRS, which is striving to shake off the post-defeat blues from the recent state Assembly elections.
On Wednesday, 17 January, Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan made a noteworthy decision — opting to take no action on the state government’s proposals to fill Legislative Council vacancies under the Governor’s quota.
This decision was influenced by two pending petitions before the Telangana High Court, filed by BRS leaders Dasoju Sravan and K Satyanarayana in 2023.
They contested the rejection by the Governor of the then-state Cabinet’s recommendations, chaired by former chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao, which had appointed them as Legislative Council members under the Governor’s quota.
The Governor dismissed this recommendation in September 2023, after receiving it in July.
A communique from the Raj Bhavan on Wednesday stated that the Governor’s decision was in deference to the high court’s observation, emphasising that “no further steps be taken in filling the vacant MLC’s posts under the Governor quota” until the court decides on the two petitions.
Following the rejection of their nomination by the Governor, the two leaders argued in the high court that, as per Article 171 of the Indian Constitution, the Governor had no right to reject their nominations.
The Governor’s counsel, however, contended that the petition was not maintainable under Article 361 of the Constitution.
The court, adjourning the hearing to 24 January, declared that it would first examine the maintainability of the petitions before delving into their contents.
In rejecting their nomination, the Governor asserted that they did not meet the qualifications for the posts, citing a lack of “special achievements”, accompanied by a “short tenure” in their respective fields, and an absence of a methodology adopted for consideration.
Furthermore, she urged the Council of Ministers to contemplate the nomination of “non-politically-affiliated people” to ensure that opportunities are not denied to deserving candidates.
Tamilisai Soundararajan referred to the Constitution, which empowers the state government to nominate individuals with special knowledge or practical experience in literature, science, art, cooperative movements, and social services to fill vacancies in the Legislative Council under the “Governor’s quota”.
With the recent victory in the Assembly elections, the Congress is now in the process of selecting candidates to fill the two vacant berths.
