Andhra Pradesh HC sets aside disqualification of MLC Indukuri Raghuraju

The court asked the chairman to reconsider his decision and ordered restoration of his membership until the final order is issued by the council head. A two-judge division bench Justices G Narendar and TCD Sekhar delivered the verdict.The court observed: “The complaint against the petitioner was that he had voluntarily given up his membership of the political party and thereby committed an act of defection.” The primary allegation was that his wife and other supporters joined the opposition party on March 4, 2024. When the petitioner was supposed to appear before the council chairman for a hearing on the issue, he was admitted to Narayana Mediciti Hospital in Visakhapatnam to undergo a medical procedure. The council chairman was informed about this with a request to adjourn the hearing. The court observed that the order, issued by the chairman to disqualify the petitioner, was bereft of any details. “This would demonstrate that the petitioner was instrumental in coercing or convincing his wife and other supporters to abandon the then ruling party (YSRC) and join hands with the opposition party.” The court said that the mere absence of a denial or absence of a statement by the MLC condemning the actions of his wife would not be sufficient ground to hold the same as an act of defection.The court observed that the council chairman erred in deducing a fact on the strength of his personal knowledge. Moreover, the court found that the council chairman had placed reliance primarily on media reports and “no authentication of the veracity of the reports was done.” Mere surmises and conjectures “cannot form the basis of an order,” the court ruled.The court stated, “The writ petition is allowed. The order of the council chairman with regard to disqualification is set aside as it was against the law and principles of natural justice.”