VIJAYAWADA: The High Court on Monday sought details about the background and functioning of the Society for Protection of Civil Property and Environmental Rights (SPCPER), after several public interest litigations (PILs) were filed in its name by different individuals.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Lisa Gill and Justice Challa Gunaranjan questioned the society’s counsel, Jada Sravan Kumar, about its registration, headquarters, bylaws and the authority under which different persons were filing PILs on behalf of the organisation.
The High Court observed that multiple PILs on different issues had been filed in the name of the same society by different individuals. It sought details of the resolutions passed by the society authorising the petitioners to institute the cases, besides other relevant documents. The bench also questioned whether the prescribed procedures for filing PILs had been followed.
The issue came up when four PILs filed by different individuals in the name of SPCPER on various issues were listed before the court on Monday.
Taking note of the common name under which the petitions had been filed, the bench sought clarification on the society’s credentials and functioning.
Appearing for the society, advocate Jada Sravan Kumar submitted that the SPCPER had its headquarters at Gandhi Nagar in Vijayawada and had been functioning since 2018 to raise issues relating to alleged shortcomings in the system.
He told the court that several members were filing applications under the Right to Information Act in different districts on behalf of the society as individuals had allegedly faced threats when they sought information independently.
The counsel denied any malafide intention in filing PILs in the society’s name.
He sought time to place before the court the society’s bylaws, resolutions authorising the filing of PILs and details of the persons authorised to represent it.
The bench granted the counsel two weeks to submit the details and adjourned the hearing.