Overview

• The Telangana High Court ruled that Chennamaneni Ramesh, a former MLA from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), is a German citizen and used forged documents to contest elections in India.
• Ramesh was fined ₹30 lakh, with ₹25 lakh payable to Congress leader Aadi Srinivas, who defeated him in the 2023 Vemulawada Assembly election.
• The court noted that Ramesh failed to provide proof from the German embassy showing he had renounced his German citizenship, a requirement under Indian law.
• The Union Home Ministry had revoked Ramesh's Indian citizenship in 2020, citing misrepresentation and concealment of facts in his citizenship application.
• Ramesh previously won the Vemulawada seat four times, once with the Telugu Desam Party and three times with the BRS, despite ongoing legal challenges to his citizenship status.