Telangana High Court Mandates Fair Hearing for Outdoor Media Owners on Ad Policy

The matter was argued on behalf of the Telangana Outdoor Media Owners Association by advocates V. Roopesh Kumar Reddy and G. Saikrishna.

The association stated that following GO No. 68 dated April 20, 2020, more than 2,600 rooftop hoardings and unipoles were removed. This resulted in the shutting down of 209 small and medium companies and affected nearly one lakh allied workers, including printers, fabricators and building owners. It also alleged that while relaxations were granted to a few large firms, smaller agencies were forced to shift operations to nearby municipalities, many of which were later merged into the GHMC, bringing similar restrictions into place again.

The association in a press release urged the government to permit rooftop hoardings under strict safety norms, including structural stability certification, wind-load compliance, periodic inspections and insurance coverage. It said detailed technical reports have been submitted to senior officials and requested that no final decision be taken without a proper hearing and a reasoned order.

HC Directs State Govt to Detail Steps Taken to Protect Himayatsagar, Osmansagar from Pollution

The Telangana High Court on Monday directed the state government and departments concerned to file detailed affidavits outlining the steps taken to protect the Himayatsagar and Osmansagar from pollution due to the release of effluents and sewerage.

The court sought details about the steps taken and to be taken in future, including data on sewerage treatment plants set up to prevent effluent flow to the lakes, measures taken to regulate the wastewater discharge, and prevent the entry of untreated sewage, industrial effluents, and agricultural run-off into the water bodies.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice G.M. Mohiuddin was dealing with a taken-up public interest litigation (PIL), based on the letter received from a person who had raised concerns regarding water pollution by quoting a study conducted by faculty members and a research scholar of the Maulana Azad National Urdu University (Manuu). The study had reportedly found that water samples from the two reservoirs did not conform to potable water norms prescribed by the Bureau of Indian Standards.

The court issued notices to the state government through its Chief Secretary, the principal secretaries of municipal administration and urban development and irrigation departments, the Telangana Pollution Control Board, the commissioners of GHMC and HMDA, the managing director of the HMWS&SB, directing them to file their counters within four weeks and adjourned the matter for hearing to March 26.

Telangana High Court Directs BIE to Issue Hall Tickets to Students Hit by College Fee Default

The Telangana High Court has directed the Telangana Board of Intermediate Education (BIE) to permit a group of students to appear for the ensuing public examinations after they were denied hall tickets due to non-remittance of examination fees by their respective colleges.

Justice E.V. Venugopal issued the interim directions while hearing a batch of writ petitions filed by students. They contended that although they had paid the fee to their respective colleges, the institutions, arrayed as unofficial respondents, had failed to remit the same to the Intermediate Board owing to clerical errors.

Counsel for the petitioners submitted that students have no direct mechanism to pay the examination fee to the BIE. It was brought to the court’s notice that the colleges had addressed letters to the BIE admitting that the fee was not remitted due to clerical mistakes.

Justice Venugopal directed the BIE to examine the genuineness of the petitioners’ claims. If the claims were found to be in order, the BIE was to immediately issue hall tickets to the petitioners to enable them to appear for the examinations.

The Board was instructed to conduct practical examinations for the affected students and to notify a separate schedule at a date and time convenient from an administrative standpoint, after completion of the regular practical examinations. These orders are applicable to the students who filed the writ petitions before the High Court.

Telangana High Court Warns Govt and GHMC of Costs for Delay in Ward Delimitation Case

A division bench of the Telangana High Court on Monday pulled up the state government and the GHMC for failing to file counter-affidavits in a petition challenging the delimitation wards in the corporation, despite a lapse of five months.

However, the bench granted three weeks more, by way of last indulgence, to the GHMC and municipal administration and urban development department, to file their counters, The court said failure to do so would entail payment of costs of `5,000 each to the Telangana Legal Services Authority. The case was directed to be listed after four weeks.

The bench comprising Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice G.M. Mohiuddin was dealing with a writ petition filed by Syed Saleem and Zakat Foundation, who challenged the constitutional validity of Section 6 of the Telangana Municipalities Act, 2019. The petitioners contended that the provision, which uses ‘voters’ as the basis for delimitation, was contrary to Article 243S of the Constitution and Section 8(b) of the Delimitation Act, 2002, which emphasised ‘population’ as the determinative criterion. They alleged non-compliance with GO Ms. No. 570 dated November 6, 1996, issued under the GHMC Act, 1955.

It was argued that if the elections were conducted without proper delimitation, there would be substantial disparities among wards. During the pendency of the case, the state issued GO Ms. No. 266 dated December 8, 2025, to undertake restructuring of the GHMC. The petitioners sought a writ of mandamus restraining authorities from holding the GHMC elections until the lawful ward formation was completed.