Shivangi Prakash –
Published on August 05, 2021, at 11:37 AM
The Telangana High Court served a notice on Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar in his individual capacity and other officials in connection with the issue of a Government Order (GO) sanctioning Rs 58 crore for fighting Contempt of court cases.
The Telangana High Court, while ordering the notices, issued interim orders to the Government not to release the funds towards expenses for the contempt of court cases.
Justice Hima Kohli and Vijaysen Reddy were hearing the plea and questioned the Government on how it could sanction Rs 58 crore to fight contempt cases.
The Judges asked the Government how it could spend the public money and how the treasury rules are allowed.
The petition was filed by a lecturer. The other officials to whom the Court ordered notices were: Secretaries of Revenue and Finance, Chief Commissioner – Land Administration and the Director of Treasuries. The Court adjourned the case to October 27.
The sum was sanctioned by the Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar to fight contempt cases filed against the Chief Commissioner of Land Administration (CCLA), a post he was holding even after assuming charge as Chief Secretary.
The Congress has demanded that Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao immediately oust Somesh Kumar as Chief Secretary, in view of the High Court’s judgment on Wednesday, which found fault with GO 208 (dated June 7, 2021).
Dasoju Sravan Kumar, a senior Congress politician and AICC spokesperson, welcomed the decision, saying the High Court had condemned the Telangana Government’s “spend-thrift approach.”
“The High Court judgment on the GO 208 is a slap in the face of the Government as well as the bureaucrats toeing the lines of TRS regime,” Sravan Kumar stated.
Kumar also criticized the State Government for issuing the GO authorising the CS to spend 58.95 crore solely on fighting contempt suits brought against him.
Also read: What Constitutes a Contempt of Court?