The Congress party plunged into crisis when its 12 MLAs in Telangana quit the party and decided to join the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS). They also escaped the provisions of the anti-defection law. On the other hand, the Congress called it daylight murder of democracy. It is a big jolt to the Congress in Telangana.
Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera said that this was not a healthy practice for the democratic country like India and it amounted to butchering people’s mandate, which the people of the state would never forgive. Khera said that the ruling TRS has misused power and killed democracy. These 12 MLAs were elected by voters who had rejected the TRS. They voted for the Congress. Therefore, this is a murder of their mandate.
Assembly Speaker Pocharam Srinivas Reddy has also approved their request of merger with the TRS. All defectors escaped the provisions of the anti-defection law as the strength of the defectors’ is equal to two-thirds of total number of the Congress Legislature Party in the state. It is worth mention that two-thirds of the MLAs or MPs of a party can form a separate bloc and the anti-defection law does not apply to them.
