Hyderabad, October 22: A division bench of the High court, consisting of Justice DSR Varma and Justice Reddy Kanta Rao, today dismissed as infructuous a writ petition filed against former chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy for his alleged involvement in the Idupulapaya land controversy.
Former TDP minister P Ashok Gajapathi Raju filed the petition alleging that the State had failed to take proper action on the matter. The court recorded the plea of the petitioner. The government counsel wanted the court also to record the pleadings of the government to which the petitioner’s counsel objected.
The bench remarked that since the main case was against the former chief minister the case became infructuous.
Satyam case hearing to continue today
Justice Chandra Kumar heard at length a former solicitor-general on the bail petition filed by one of the accused in the Satyam scam. Hearing of the matter will continue tomorrow.
Talluri Srinivas, chartered accountant of Prizewater, moved the High Court pointing out that he had been in jail since January 24 but not questioned by the authorities since March. He said he had fully cooperated with the investigators and, because the charge sheet was filed, there was no need for his continued lodging in the jail. He further pleaded that he was facing charges before the professional body of chartered accountants and if he was not enlarged on bail he would suffer grave and irreparable loss.
Zaheerabad commissioner summoned in land case
A division bench consisting of Justice G Raghuram and Justice Ramesh Ranganathan passed orders requiring the presence of the commissioner of Zaheerabad municipality in the court on Oct 29 in a case of alleged irregularities in the allotment of land for housing. The bench said the secretary (municipal administration & urban development) would also be required to be present in the court if he failed to file a counter-affidavit by the said date.
The bench was dealing with a writ petition complaining of large-scale illegalities and irregularities by the civic authorities in allotting land in Zaheerabad under the Integrated Development of Small and Medium Townships scheme. The petitioner, Amanullah Ghouri, a municipal councillor, complained that the municipal chairman and vice-chairperson had allotted sites to their kith and kin, and committed large-scale illegalities in the implementation of the project despite his objections.
Seeks report on location of Bhavanapadu power plant
The bench called for reports from the chief secretary and the ministry of environment and forest whether the Bhavanapadu thermal power project in Srikakulam district was standing in any swamp or wetland area. The bench was dealing with a writ petition filed by environmentalist Capt. Rama Rao alleging that the plant was on swamp lands at Naakapadu and was illegal. The bench was shown different maps by the government and the petitioner, making claims and counter-claims on whether the plant stood on a swamp.
Also faced with a controversy as to whether the 3,000-acre plant was on the Naukapadu or Kakurlapalli swap which are over 15,000 acres apart, the court gave the authoritieshave three weeks’ time to submit reports on the actual location of the power plant.
Refuses to stay sales tax collection from LCL-IJM
The bench refused to stay the collection of sales tax of Rs 1,71,97,232 from LCL-IJM Interior Decorators for the work carried out by them at the Cyberabad Convention Centre. The bench was dealing with a writ petition questioning the refusal of the Sales Tax Appellate Authority to stay the payment of the demanded amount pending appeal as illegal and contrary to an earlier order of remand made by the High Court.
The petitioner contended that the revised demand by the tax authority for the products were entitled to certain exemptions.
The authorities had found that the claim that the transactions were in the `high seas’ was not proved.
The bench ordered issuance notice but did not stay the payment of the amount demanded.
–Agencies