Telangana Unlikely to Recover Salary Paid to Disqualified MLA Danam Nagender
Telangana officials say salary and benefits paid to disqualified former Khairatabad MLA Danam Nagender are unlikely to be recovered without a specific court order.
The Telangana government is unlikely to recover the salary and other benefits paid to former Khairatabad MLA Danam Nagender for the period between April 23, 2024 and the date of the final judicial verdict, officials have indicated.
The Telangana High Court, in a judgment delivered on September 18, 2026, held that Mr. Nagender incurred disqualification as an MLA with effect from April 23, 2024. That ruling was subsequently upheld by the Supreme Court. Mr. Nagender had filed his nomination as a Congress candidate for the Secunderabad Parliament seat on April 24, 2024, while continuing to be a BRS MLA. The Khairatabad Assembly seat was declared vacant through a Gazette notification on September 26, 2026.
With the disqualification now settled, the question under examination is whether the salary, allowances and other benefits drawn by Mr. Nagender as an MLA after April 23, 2024 must be returned to the government.
Officials point out that there is no provision for automatic recovery of salary and perks merely because a court later holds that an MLA stood disqualified with retrospective effect. They also note that the disqualification proceedings contained no specific direction ordering recovery of the salary or other benefits.
"If somebody approaches the court seeking recovery of the salary and the court passes an order to that effect, the government will honour the decision," an official said.
Officials recalled the controversy over the Governor's quota nominations of M. Kodandaram and Amer Ali Khan as a precedent for the government's position. The two were appointed in January 2024, but the Supreme Court stayed their appointments in August 2025. The government pursued the matter through the courts, and fresh appointments were eventually made following the legal proceedings. According to officials, no recovery was made of the salaries and allowances drawn by Kodandaram and Amer Ali Khan during the period in which they functioned as MLCs.
The government's argument rests on the principle that salary and allowances are paid for services rendered while a person is legally occupying a legislative position. The mere fact that an appointment or continuation in office is challenged in court does not, by itself, make the person ineligible to draw the remuneration, officials contend.
They maintain that the same principle would apply in Mr. Nagender's case unless a competent court specifically directs recovery. The issue could, however, be raised separately before a court, and officials said the government would comply with any judicial direction on recovery if such a matter is brought before the courts.