Telangana HC Suspends MP/MLA Judge: What We Know So Far

The judge had directed that a case be filed against the Chief Election Commissioner of India & other officials.

(Photo: iStock)

The Telangana High Court on Tuesday, 22 August, suspended Special Judge K Jaya Kumar, who was overseeing the trial of criminal cases involving Members of Parliament (MPs) and Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) within the state, news agency PTI reported.

Why: This action, according to the news agency, was reportedly taken due to him instructing the police to register a criminal case against Rajiv Kumar, the Chief Election Commissioner of India, along with Sanjiv Kumar, the Chief Electoral Officer of Telangana, and several other election officials based in Mahabubnagar.

The 'direction': On 11 August, an FIR was officially filed, naming Telangana Excise Minister V Srinivas Goud, Chief Election Commissioner Kumar, and numerous other officials. This action followed a referral from the sessions court in response to allegations of "tampering" with Goud's 2018 state assembly election affidavit.

The complaint against the judge: The sessions court acted upon a private complaint, asserting that Goud, an MLA representing Mahabubnagar, had manipulated the election affidavit by concealing crucial information. While Goud was identified as the primary accused, Chief Election Commissioner Kumar and various other officials were implicated as co-accused.

The complainant argued that they had collaborated with the minister, leading to the closure of the election affidavit without pursuing any additional measures.

Citing an order, sources revealed that the high court, invoking the Telangana Civil Services Rules of 1991, suspended the judicial officer. This decision was made "in larger public interest," PTI said quoting sources.

This action came about subsequent to a formal complaint lodged with the high court by a senior representative from the Election Commission.

A private complaint, submitted under Section 200 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) by Raghavendra Raju, prompted the high court's intervention. The court indicated that the judicial officer had acted hastily and without conducting a preliminary investigation or recording the statement of the complainant.

(With inputs from PTI)