Telangana Congress Files Case Against 12 MLAs Who Defected To KCR's Party

Telangana Pradesh Congress Commitee Chief (TPCC) Revanth Reddy filed a complaint against 12 MLAs who had defected into Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) from Congress in 2018 and said that the CBI which is probing the alleged MLA Poaching case should also probe the case related to the legislators who defected to the TRS.

"We have filed a complaint at the Moinabad police station against MLAs who won elections in 2018 on Congress tickets and defected to the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (now BRS)," Revanth Reddy said while speaking to the media.

"So we lodged a complaint against these MLAs and demanded to take stringent action against the culprits," Mr Reddy said.

"There were 12 Congress MLAs who had defected. Maheshwaram MLA got the minister post, Rega Kantha Rao got the Whip, and other MLAs got a lot of contracts and financial benefits," he claimed.

The complaint was filed at Moinabad Police station in Hyderabad.

TPCC chief said that the CBI inquiry which is going to start into the alleged MLA Poaching case in the state should also consider including the case of 12 MLAs who defected into BRS.

An investigation is being conducted into the allegations of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) trying to lure four BRS MLAs.

"They should be investigated and strict action should be taken accordingly against them," Mr Reddy added.

Earlier, Union Minister G Kishan Reddy welcomed the decision of the Telangana High Court to transfer the MLA poaching case to the CBI while also disbanding the Special Investigation Team set up by the state government to conduct the probe.

The Union Minister had said that the decision is a "slap in the face of the KCR government".

"I hereby welcome the judgement of the Hon'ble Highcourt in a fake case of MLAs' purchase. The Judgement of Hon'ble High Court quashing the very constitution of SIT in the fabricated 'MLAs' purchase case' is a slap in the face of KCR government," he had said in last December.

Mr Reddy said that the court's order is a vindication of the BJP's stance that the case is fabricated with no substance to it.

"The High Court is categorical in nailing the lies of KCR. The judgement vindicates the stance of BJP that the whole episode is the creation of KCR who is feeling frustrated with the fact that the people are furious with his dynastic rule," he had said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)