Poaching case: BJP files appeal in HC challenging single judge order

Hyderabad: The BJP Telangana unit, represented by its general secretary Gujjula Premendar Reddy, on Thursday filed a writ appeal in the Telangana High Court challenging the order of Justice Bollam Vijaysen Reddy of November 8 directing the Cyberabad Commissioner of Police to go ahead with the investigation into the alleged poaching of four TRS legislators by some BJP activists at a farmhouse in Moinabad.

The petitioner sought a direction to extend the interim order dated October 29 of Justice Reddy in the writ petition No. 39767 of 2022 wherein the judge had deferred the investigation into crime no. 455/2022 registered by the Moinabad police until further orders. The petitioner had sought a direction to hand over the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

During the course of hearing, Justice Reddy, after hearing elaborately all counsels representing the State government and the petitioner (BJP) and the three accused, had passed orders on November 8 modifying his earlier order dated October 29 permitting the Cyberabad Commissioner of Police to go ahead with the investigation.

The main ground taken by the petitioner challenging the order is that the judge ought to have adjudicated the writ petition on maintainability only as the issues involved have national ramifications and that the entire episode of poaching is nothing but a well organised conspiracy by none other than the Chief Minister, who held a press conference after the incident, and, before investigation could commence, the entire incident was telecast live on TV channels.

The State government had recently constituted a special investigation team headed by the City Commissioner of Police. This move of the government itself shows that the entire machinery is exchanging material pertaining to the investigation. The writ appeal may come up for hearing before a division bench on November 11.

HC directs State to file counter; govt stand on Golkonda Golf Course

The High Court division bench, comprising Chief Justice Ujjal Bhuyan and Justice CV Bhaskar, on Thursday heard two PILs, one alleging damage to the Golkonda Fort on account of the golf course, and the other to preserve Naya Quila Talab (lake) at Golkonda.

One of the petitioner's counsel B Rachna Reddy informed the court that a lot of area was destroyed for the sake of the golf course. "We want to protect the fort". She opposed the golf course within the Fort's Naya Quila, which is a protective monument, where several MoUs have been signed with the State government.

She asserted:"Let it be a protective monument, which it is; the government can carry out archeological and other activities but not destroy the entire structure just for the sake of golf course". Reddy averred. "people want the historical Golconda monument protected. With the golf course the structure is getting demolished and changing. In fact, we have submitted photographs to the court. If the activity continues the monument is not going to remain the same.

CJ Bhuyan queried the GP of Irrigation department Harish what is the stand of the State Government and Wakf Board on the golf course within the monument. Harish sought some more time to get instructions from the government.

Irked over the GP's submission, CJ Bhuyan observed: The matter is pending since 10 years; you seek some more time to file the counter.

Harish informed the court that Naya Talab in Golkonda was intact and there was no obstruction to it as of now. "The concerned collector also filed in June 2021 the status report of the lake".

Senior counsel S Ravi, appearing for the Hyderabad Golf Course, said the golf course had taken permission of the Archeological Survey of India (ASI). He submitted that inside the fort at Jawarikunta a garbage dump is located. The grassing work of the dump has been done; no further work has been done anywhere in the fort. At Qutub Minar also a grass course exists, but it has not been made controversial in any manner, Ravi said.

He informed the court that the litigation has been continuing for over 15 long years."The allegation of fort damage is baseless".

In Naya Quila the court had earlier considered and permitted grassing in the entire area; no part of the fort is damaged, Ravi asserted.

Counsel for Archeological Survey of India (ASI) B Mukherjee told court it had filed a counter affidavit on December 16, 2017 itself. The CJ division bench, after hearing all contentions, directed Mukherjee to circulate all the counter copies to all the parties. The bench directed the government authorities to file a status report of alleged part of the fort. Hearing in the case was adjourned to November 14.

If excess bodies are available at Gandhi Hospital give every MBBS 1st year student a body to learn

On Thursday the HC division bench comprising CJ Bhuyan and Justice Bhaskar Reddy heard the public interest litigation filed by Abhinava Colony Residents' Association, Padmaraonagar, represented by its president Rajeev Deshpande and seven others seeking to declare the action of Gandhi Hospital in leaving unclaimed, unknown, decomposed, decayed bodies outside the mortuary as illegal.

The PIL sought steps to remove all such bodies from the mortuary and shift them to city outskirts or destroy them by burning. It wanted the surroundings of the mortuary and hospital to be kept neat and hygienic. CJ Bhuyan queried the government authorities about the status of the case. GP for Home Mamidi Roopender informed the court that the status report was filed on July 8, 2022. After reading the report, the CJ observed that the unclean bodies can be used for the first year MBBS students. "If the hospital has excess bodies, give one body to every student, so that it will be easy for the students to learn".

The report stated that the storage capacity of bodies at the hospital mortuary was 12; subsequently it was enhanced to 17. The mortuary has 17 modern preservation boxes of bodies Modern methods utilised don't cause inconvenience to the local people and also to patients and their attendants. After 72 hours, the bodies will be moved to crematorium or graveyard for funeral with GHMC collaboration. The bench, after knowing facts, expressed satisfaction over the authorities' action and disposed of the PIL.