Hyderabad, March 19: The High Court of Andhra Pradesh pulled up the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) officials on Friday for sealing the DAV Public School in Neredmet and called the municipal authorities as “outright dictator”. It also issued stay orders and directed GHMC officials to appear before the court on March 21.
On Thursday, GHMC officials had sealed the school for allegedly not paying property tax for the last three years. DAV school management, aggrieved with the decision of GHMC to seal the gate and administrative office, approached the court on Friday.
Sita Kiran, principal, DAV Public School told Express that officials had slapped notices alleging the management had failed to pay property tax amounting to Rs 20 lakh. “GHMC officials seized the school premises when the CBSE examinations were in progress,’’ she said.
“GHMC is acting in a worse manner than an outright dictator. The petitioner is an educational institution established by a society more than a century old. The property tax payable was revised more than 10 times in the recent past,” the court said in its order.
It further said if a demand notice was issued to the petitioner to pay the revised tax, the respondents could have adopted method prescribed under the GHMC Act.
“Not only the office and main gate were locked at a time when examinations were taking place but also wide publicity was given to obviously threaten other institutions,’’ the court said. Meanwhile, K Sudhakar, GHMC zonal commissioner said they would continue cracking the whip on defaulters.
–Agencies