Superintendent of police to be quizzed on sand contractors

The court was dealing with a plea by the NGO Watch — Voice of the People, seeking to declare the action of the authorities in not taking any action against the illegal sand mining mafia in the district of Mahbubnagar — where farmers were being killed for questioning illegal transportation of sand from their agricultural lands without any permits — as illegal.

The court sought to know from the authorities about the number of incidents wherein farmers and government servants had been victimised by the sand mafia and also the measures initiated by the government to prevent illegal mining in the district.

Counsel for the government explained that vigilance squads had been constituted to prevent illegal sand mining and in 2013, in one incident, sand contractors had even damaged government vehicles and had tried to assault the officers. While wanting to know the reasons for the police not being a part of the vigilance squads, the Bench directed the SP to be present on August 24 and explain the facts.

Making it clear that its endeavour was to see that every investor of the Agri Gold Group of Companies was repaid, the Hyderabad High Court on Monday directed the company to file an affidavit outlining its assets and liabilities and also details of directors and chairman and properties owned by them within a week.

A division bench comprising acting Chief Justice Dilip B. Bhosale and Justice S.V. Bhatt was dealing with a public interest litigation by the Telangana Agri Gold Customers and Agents Welfare Association, represented by its president Mr A. Ramesh Babu of the city, seeking a direction to handover the case to the CBI or ED.

Senior counsel appearing for the company D. Prakash Reddy, while submitting that the company had identified certain unencumbered properties at Bengaluru, urged the Bench to grant permission for selling these properties to repay the investors.

The bench asked counsel whether the sale consideration of the identified properties would be enough to repay the deposits of the investors, because hundreds of investors had deposited more than Rs 6,000 crore in the company.

When counsel replied that he would have to ascertain the same from his clients, the bench told him that at this juncture, the question of allowing the company to sell its properties would not arise. However, if the company and its board of directors filed an affidavit disclosing the assets and liabilities and gave an assurance to the court that they would repay all the investors, it would then examine the plea of the company.

Replying to a question from the bench, counsel said that Mr A. Venkata Seshu Narayana Rao was the chairman and he was less than 57 years old. Reacting to this, Justice Bhatt pointed out that the chairman seemed to be younger than Subrata Roy of Sahara Group and Sudipto Sen, chairman of the Saradha Group, which are entangled in scams.

While granting a week to the company to file a sworn affidavit , the Bench reiterated that the helpless investors who had deposited their life’s savings with Agri Gold companies should get back their money with interest and directors of the company must inform the court what properties they were going to sell to settle the dues.

The Telangana government on Monday informed the Hyderabad High Court that a sub-inspector of police had been suspended and an inquiry ordered into the alleged lock-up death case in Nizamabad.

The court was dealing with a petition by Mr Gulam Rabbani, advocate and president of Citizens Forum for Equity and Justice, seeking a probe into the death of Shaik Hyder in police lock-up in Nizamabad on March 21.

After recording the statement of the government counsel, the court closed the case.

The Hyderabad High Court on Monday directed the authorities to stop sand quarrying in Godavari River at the Prakkilanka village area of Tallapudi mandal of West Godavari district.

While dealing with a plea by Mr Sunkara Ganga Raju, seeking to stop illegal quarrying in the reach of the Prakkilanka with heavy machinery and causing damage to the riverbed, a division Bench comprising acting Chief Justice Dilip B. Bhosale and Justice S.V. Bhatt made it clear that no Way Bills should be issued.

The Bench asked the district collector to be present before it and explain why these serious issues were not taken care of and why they weren’t properly explained in the counter affidavit.

The petitioner brought to the notice of the Bench that the quarrying lease had been given to a society even prior to it being registered and placed photographs showing how the riverbed was being dug up illegally in violation of the rules.

The Hyderabad High Court on Monday directed the principal secretary to the school education of AP government to file an affidavit assuring the court that it will implement examinations reforms from 2015-16 academic year, (Ishaqui, 200)

Moved by the plight of hundreds of elementary students in Mahbubnagar district who don’t have teachers, the Hyderabad High Court on Monday directed the Telangana government to suspend teachers who were not attending schools in rural areas and also officers responsible for not posting sufficient teachers in the schools of various villages in the district.

A division Bench comprising acting Chief Justice Dilip B. Bhosale and Justice S.V. Bhatt was dealing with a taken-up case based on postcards send by more than 600 students from Kesavaram, Chintala Kunta, Mittadoddi, Yellamdoddi, Chagadona, Arigadda and Boyalagudem of the district.

The students informed the HC that there were only two teachers for 414 students in the Boyalag-udem Upper Primary School and only one teacher for 180 students of Classes V and VI in Kesavaram.

The students submitted that there were no teachers for 166 students in the Chintala Kunta School, 120 students in Mittadoddi and 120 students in Yellamdoddi village.

The Bench directed the TS government to inspect all the schools in the district and submit a report before it by Thursday.