Hyderabad HC orders removal of unauthorised statues

December 26, 2014 11:00 pm | Updated August 16, 2016 01:26 pm IST - HYDERABAD:

The Hyderabad High Court on Friday directed the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana governments to take immediate steps for the removal of unauthorised statues of political leaders and celebrities from public places. A division bench, comprising Chief Justice Kalyan Jyoti Sengupta and Justice P.V. Sanjay Kumar, gave orders in this regard.

The bench was dealing with a petition by Sudanagunta Murali Krishna of Prakasam district, which was moved in 2008, challenging digging of pits for installation of a statue by encroaching upon a road from the National Highway No 5 to the villages of Mukthinuthalapadu and Gudimillapadu.

When the petition was heard on Friday, the counsel for the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh government produced an executive order issued in February last year barring installation of statues or construction of structures on public roads, pavements, sideways and other public utility places.

Justice Sengupta expressed dismay at the authorities in allowing the activity despite the ban.

The bench noted that the issue that was pointed out by the court in the matter had already been taken care of by the undivided AP State by issuing the order. The order could be termed an existing law as on the appointed day for bifurcation. This was still binding on both the States and their officials.

The bench directed the Commissioners of Police in metropolitan cities of both States, municipal authorities and other senior police officers to strictly adhere to the GO.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.