A division bench of the Hyderabad High court on Monday asked Telangana to file a counter affidavit explaining how the insistence on the 1956 cut-off date for student scholarships in the State was in tune with constitutional scheme and national integrity.
The bench was dealing with two writ petitions filed by P.Satyanarayana and D.Manikyavaraprasad, former ministers challenging the decision of the Telangana government while formulating Financial Assistance to Students of Telangana (FAST). The bench comprising Chief Justice Kalyan Jyothisen Gupta and Justice P.V.Sanjay Kumar did not pass any order but pointedly asked the Advocate General of Telangana several questions.
Satya Prasad, a senior counsel appearing for the petitioners pointed out that in 1956, Andhra Pradesh was formed merging Telangana and the Telugu speaking parts of Madras state. In 2014, Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated to create the new state of Telangana. The current decision of the Telangana government declaring that under FAST, children whose parents were residents prior to 1956 alone would get scholarships was unconstitutional, he argued.
The bench wondered how in India such cut-off date could be insisted upon. When the Chief Justice asked K. Ramakrishna Reddy, advocate general of Telangana to substantiate the action, he clarified that it was a policy decision of the government.
The bench at one stage asked the government not to implement the scheme without court’s permission. The advocate general said that a committee was formed to frame guidelines and there was no need for interim orders now. The bench asked the State to file a counter explaining the decision especially in the light of Article 19 of the Constitution. The bench said that a provision for SC and ST communities or poor people could be made and added that any classification based on region, nativity etc may not be proper. “If every State adopted such an attitude, it would not be good for the country,” it said. The case will be listed for hearing after six weeks.
