HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court on Thursday delivered a stern rebuke to HYDRAA Commissioner AV Ranganath, calling his conduct “presumptuous” and warning that his continued absence in a contempt case could lead to non-bailable warrants.
A division bench of justices Moushumi Bhattacharya and BR Madhusudhan Rao expressed strong displeasure over his failure to appear despite a Form-I notice directing his presence in a case related to the restoration of Bathukammakunta at Bagh Amberpet.
The court noted that similar notices had been issued since October over alleged violations of status quo orders on the water body. Instead of complying, Ranganath filed an affidavit seeking exemption from personal appearance.
What angered the Bench further were the reasons cited: he claimed pressing duties related to disaster management at Bachupally and even sought a blanket exemption from all future hearings. The judges took serious exception to these submissions, especially the statement by the special government counsel that the officer “did not want to trouble the court” by appearing — a remark the Bench said reflected an unwarranted assumption that court directions could be taken lightly.
The judges remarked that while they appreciated courtesy towards the court, no officer could assume that its orders could be bypassed. They added that, if needed, the court had the authority to make a contemnor stand in court for an entire day, though it had so far shown restraint.
Warning that such conduct was unacceptable, the Bench directed Ranganath to appear on December 5 and cautioned that non-bailable warrants would be issued if he failed to comply.