Hyderabad: All-India Congress Committee (AICC) Telangana in-charge Meenakshi Natarajan filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court Thursday morning, challenging the Madhya Pradesh returning officer’s cancellation of her Rajya Sabha nomination for non-disclosure of a pending case against her in a Hyderabad court.
The case is expected to come up for an urgent hearing before the court’s vacation bench. The Congress leader’s nomination for a seat from Madhya Pradesh was rejected on Tuesday by the Election Commission.
The case pertained to a private complaint filed by A Srilatha in September 2025 at the Nampally District Magistrate Court in Hyderabad, Telangana.
In her written complaint, of which ThePrint has a copy, Srilatha alleged that Natarajan provided political patronage to Kumbham Shivakumar Reddy, against whom she has levelled serious allegations of sexual misconduct, molestation and death threats. She alleged that despite repeated complaints, Congress leaders in Telangana, including Meenakshi Natarajan, did not intervene to cancel Shiva Kumar Reddy’s primary membership.
Srilatha named seven Congress leaders in the complaint, including Pradesh Congress Chief Mahesh Kumar Goud, Minister for Animal Husbandry and Dairy Development Vakati Srihari as well as Narayanpet MLAChitten Parnika Reddy.
The case papers point to events that unfolded nearly six years ago in 2020. Congress leader Kumbham Shiva Kumar Reddy, who was then the District Congress Committee (DCC) president, was asked to work with Srilatha, who was made in charge of the Narayanpet Municipality elections in 2020. During the election, the two leaders allegedly had a fallout, because of which the Congress lost the municipality to the Bharata Rashtra Samithi.
A senior Telangana Congress MP told ThePrint that Reddy began threatening Srilatha after she threatened to make public some incriminating material against him. When this was brought to the attention of Congress leaders, Shiva Kumar Reddy was asked to step down as DCC President in mid-2021.
Even after the municipality election, Srilatha lodged two FIRs in Hyderabad and Bengaluru in 2022 and 2023 against Shiva Kumar Reddy.
Based on the court’s direction, a case was filed in the Punjagutta police station on 7 May, 2022 and also at the Cubbon Park police station in Bengaluru on 28 June, 2023. Both complaints were filed under Section 223 (intentional disobedience of a lawful order issued by a public servant) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).
However, the cases were dismissed for lack of evidence.
Both Shiva Kumar Reddy and Srilatha then approached the Congress state election committee for a ticket to contest the Narayanpet assembly election. Sources in Congress said that both candidates pressured the leadership for a ticket, but given the continuing hostility between Reddy and Srilatha, the party leaders eventually decided to give a ticket to Reddy’s daughter-in-law Chitten Parnika Reddy, who is now the Narayanpet sitting MLA.
The Congress came to power in December 2023, and Meenakshi Natarajan took over as AICC Telangana in charge in February 2025, replacing Deepa Dasmunshi.
In September 2025, seven months after Natarajan took over as AICC Telangana in charge, Srilatha again alleged that she faced a threat to her life from Reddy and his supporters. This time around, she lodged a private complaint before the district magistrate against Natarajan and seven other Congress leaders for failing to take any action against Shiva Kumar Reddy despite repeatedly apprising them of threats made to her.
“Srilatha lodged a complaint for the third time as a victim. She wanted Reddy to be removed from the party and not just demoted from his position,” the Congress MP shared.
However, the Congress leaders themselves are not certain if Srilatha remains a state Congress member. “Nobody has removed her from the party, nor has she resigned,” the MP added.
Srilatha was not reachable over phone for her comments
An ex-municipal corporator from Tarnaka of the erstwhile Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), Srilatha was with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) from 2002 to 2007, and also served as the Andhra Pradesh (united) Mahila Secretary and Joint Secretary of the party from 2007 to 2010. Subsequently, she joined the Congress party.
With the case coming to light on 9 June, Congress leaders were scurrying to ensure it did not impede Meenakshi Natarajan’s Rajya Sabha candidacy. While the two cases in 2022 and 2023 do not have material standing, the case registered in September 2025, which is still ongoing, is being taken into consideration by the EC.
Even though the AICC leader’s name appears only once in the complaint that she was only apprised of Reddy’s alleged threats, Congress leaders shared that Meenakshi was served a notice.
“Meenakshi ji responded to the court’s questions, but we lost track of the case after further direction was provided by the magistrate,” one of the Congress leaders said.
An advocate of the Telangana High Court who appears for the state BJP, K.Karuna Sagar, told ThePrint that Meenakshi Natarajan was aware of the case and that an advocate was also deputed by the Congress to respond to the court.
“Election affidavits are meant to ensure transparency and accountability. According to reports, the Returning Officer found that Meenakshi Natarajan had failed to disclose pending proceedings before a Hyderabad court despite knowing the same, and accordingly rejected her nomination,” he said.
The rejection of Rajya Sabha nomination under Section 36(2)(b) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, underscores a fundamental principle of democracy: full disclosure is mandatory, not optional, he added.
However, addressing the media in Madhya Pradesh, Meenakshi Natarajan rejected the allegation and she has called the rejection “BJP’s attempt to manipulate the Rajya Sabha election.”
Many other Congress leaders rushed to her defence after the EC decided to set aside her candidacy. “Meenakshi Nagarajan’s candidature has been cancelled because of a misunderstanding, but there is no criminal case. So, where is the question of a criminal case that existed, which she had to disclose? A mere notice from a court is not liable to be disclosed,”
Congress Rajya Sabha MP from Telangana, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, sadi In a recorded message from an overseas location.
Almost all sitting ministers in the Telangana cabinet have written to the EC, decrying unfair treatment, and various office bearers in the state have called for a protest at the Ambedkar statue in the city.
The dramatic turn of events also drew a sharp response from senior BJP functionary BL Santosh. On his social media handle X, he said, “The whole INCIndia brigade and its bagpipers in media who are shouting from the rooftops cannot answer one single question: who from its ranks brought the Telangana case to the public domain? Better to plug that hole to arrest future embarrassments.”
(Edited by Tony Rai)