Telangana High Court Accepts HYDRAA Chief’s Apology on Bathukammakunta Case
On November 27, the High Court had cautioned him that it would order a non-bailable warrant if he skipped personal appearance in the case.
Hyderabad:HYDRAA commissioner A.V. Ranganath appeared before the Telangana High Court on Friday and tendered an unconditional apology in a contempt case related to work at the Bathukammakunta in Bagh Amberpet.
On November 27, the High Court had cautioned him that it would order a non-bailable warrant if he skipped personal appearance in the case. On Friday, Ranganath apologised and told the bench of Justice Moushumi Bhattacharya and Justice B.R. Madhusudhan Rao that his absence was unintentional and not out of disrespect or disregard for the court.
Ranganath explained that on November 25, flooding had inundated the Bachupally area. He rushed to the area on November 27 to oversee the restoration work which, he said, was still going on. The court accepted his unconditional apology and dispensed with his presence for the subsequent hearings. The bench posed the case to December 18.
The contempt petition was filed by A. Sudhakar Reddy, who challenged alleged violations of court directions concerning a disputed parcel of land. A coordinate bench had ordered status quo on May 7, while another bench permitted only limited pre-monsoon works to prevent flooding.
On June 12, the court issued status quo orders, despite which the HYDRAA completed restoration work at the Bathukammakunta site, which prompted the contempt plea and Form-1 notices for appearance for Ranganath were issued.