HC Issues Notice to Telangana Govt Over Ghansimaiguda Panchayat Merger
Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Thursday issued notices to the state government on a petition seeking the suspension of an order to merge the Ghansimaiguda gram panchayat in the Shamshabad mandal with the Shamshabad municipality.
The two-judge division bench comprising Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice J. Sreenivas Rao issued notices to the principal secretaries of panchayat raj department, municipal administration and urban development department, secretary, law department, district collector, Rangareddy district, municipal commissioner of Shamshabad, and the panchayat secretary of Ghansimiaguda gram panchayat, directing them to respond within two weeks.
The petitioner alleged that the authorities did not follow due process such as the consent of villagers by conducting meetings, before taking the decision to merge the village into the municipality.
He also complained that the merger will increase taxes and fees for buildings, which will be a burden on the common man of the gram panchayat. He also submitted that the village has a population of 2,500 and is outside the ORR at a distance of about 5 km and is located at a distance of 7 km from the Shamshabad municipality. Apart from the distance from ORR, there are no industries in this village and has no commercial activity.