Telangana HC restrains public at large to access University of Hyderabad road

Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Wednesday issued an order restraining third parties, including the general public, from accessing the road laid recently by the GHMC in the land of the University of Hyderabad.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Hima Kohli and Justice B. Vijaysen Reddy said that the road will be accessible only to the students and staff of the University of Hyderabad.

If any third parties or the public at large would be allowed to access the road, which passes through the University, then it may compromise the safety and security of those who reside in the University Campus, the Bench opined. The HC made it clear that these orders will continue till further orders.

The Bench was dealing with an appeal filed by the University of Hyderabad, aggrievied with the order of a Single Judge, who had allowed the passage of general public through a road laid by the GHMC recently, while issuing status quo orders either to not extend the road, further and stopping the University to close the road.

The Sankranti vacation court had issued a status quo in the petition filed by the University of Hyderabad (UoH), which had challenged the laying of an approach road through its campus in the stretch from the Indian School of Business (ISB) road to the government employees' colonies at Gachibowli.

The university's contention was that without acquiring the land and without Union cabinet approval, Telangana government and GHMC had laid the road of 20 feets within two days, on request of the Government Employees Housing Board Association.

This was contrary to the law.

While hearing the appeal of University, the Division Bench on Wednesday pulled up the GHMC on how it could it lay a coal tar road in an arbitrary manner, where it has no rights over the said land.

What is the hurry and scurry in laying the road by violating Article 300-A, the Bench questioned the GHMC.

"When the University was established in 1975, A 2,324 acres of land was allotted to it. The state governments had taken more than 700 acres from the University to give to other parties. So far, no alternative lands were given. Right now, in the name of a master plan, the government is trying to take possession of another 18.30 acres to lay a 100 feet road. If you want that land, then you should follow the due procedure by acquiring the land. It is very high handedness in laying the road unilaterally”, Justice Vijaysen Reddy observed.

Chief Justice Kohli told the Advocate General to show minutes of the meeting held on January 6, 2021, where the revenue officials had asked the University registrar and other authorities to come for a discussion on the handover of land to lay the road.

This meeting was arranged in the premises of Cyberabad police commissionerate.