TS Govt Decision To Scrap GO 111 Is Contempt Of Court, Says Legal Experts

HYDERABAD: Legal experts are of the opinion that the Telangana state Cabinet’s decision on May 18 to scrap GO (government order) No. 111, which prevents any activity within a 10-km radius of Osmansagar and Himayatsagar, amounts to contempt of court orders.

They said that the GO, issued in 1996 to protect the twin waterbodies that addressed more than 30 per cent of the city’s water needs, was challenged by various persons — at Supreme Court in 2000, again at High Court in 2007 and at the National Green Tribunal in one instance — but to no effect, as all courts stated to give exemption to any activity within the 10-km radius area.

However, after issuing GO No. 69, in which the state government decided to remove restrictions imposed around the twin reservoirs, repealed GO No. 111.

The move came as a surprise as the state government, as recently as 2021, had told the Telangana High Court that it did not have any plan to repeal GO No. 111, in the hearing of a petition seeking exemptions for a few survey numbers in Vatti Nagulpally village.

In GO No. 69, the government did away with the restrictions under conditions that the water quality of the two reservoirs is not impacted and directed the appointment of a committee to frame guidelines and detailed regulations in this regard, including suggestions and measures to protect the two reservoirs and prevent pollution.

But, despite a lack of clarity over whether such a committee was formed, the government repealed GO No. 111.

Legal experts said that the matter, however, is sub judice and the government’s decision to scrap it amounted to contempt of court.

Chikkudu Prabhakar, an advocate at the High Court, said that the Chief Secretary would have to face contempt proceedings over executive orders scrapping GO No. 111.

“The government did not have power to lift or amend (the GO 111) in exempting the twin lakes from its conservation, when there are several legislations made by the Union government and state governments to protect waterbodies and lakes. This is important as Osmansagar is not covered under the Dam Safety Act,” he said.

Prabhakar said he would challenge the Cabinet's decision to repeal the GO in the High Court, citing his representation in curbing the Cabinet’s decision to demolish a heritage structure in Erramanzil and saying that the Cabinet cannot surpass existing legislation.

Bollu Rachana Reddy, a senior advocate and a BJP spokesperson, pointed out that without the approval of the Supreme Court and High Court, the Telangana government cannot even modify GO 111.

“Was the Telangana state Cabinet not aware that it is the ‘action of encroachment and restriction of development threatening the reservoirs’ that has been stayed by the Supreme Court and High Court, and the decision to scrap GO No. 111 is still in contempt of those orders? Without any proposal or plan to protect the twin reservoirs from being polluted, the decision of the Cabinet would not be possible,” Rachana Reddy said.

K. Srinivasa Murthy, a senior advocate, said that the Cabinet decision amounts to contempt of the court and his client, who objected to the earlier petitions requesting exemptions in GO 111, will file a contempt case if the Cabinet decision is issued by any government order or proceedings.

Further, he said that the need to initiate efforts to restore, conserve, manage and maintain lakes as an inseparable part of the whole ecosystem cannot be undermined.

M. Vijay, an advocate, said that the Union ministry for urban development, in 2013, in an advisory on ‘Conservation and Restoration of Water Bodies in Urban Areas’ expressed concern over the poor conditions of the Himayatsagar and Osmansagar lakes in Hyderabad, which underwent unprecedented environmental degradation on account of population explosion, large-scale industrialization, chemical-intensive agriculture and water-intensive lifestyles.

“Hence, we request the Union government to step in to safeguard the twin lakes, as the present state government's decision will further degrade the conditions of the said lakes,” Vijay said.