HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court has directed the state’s Principal Secretary (Finance), Sandeep Kumar Sultania, to either ensure immediate implementation of its earlier orders regarding payment to fish seed suppliers or personally appear before the court.
Expressing displeasure over the government’s inaction, the court noted that despite its directions issued in February 2024, the authorities had failed to release the payments to those who supplied fish seeds for the 2023-24 financial year.
The bench warned that if the orders are not complied with within four weeks, the Finance Secretary must personally appear before the court to explain the non-compliance. The matter has been posted for further hearing on December 5.
The directions came while hearing a contempt petition filed by RK Fisheries Traders and Seed Suppliers owner Raj Kumar, along with other petitioners, who alleged that officials had deliberately ignored the High Court’s earlier orders.
Earlier, in February, the court had instructed the authorities to take a decision within two weeks regarding payment of the pending bills for the fish seeds supplied during 2023-24 and to communicate the decision to the petitioners. However, with no action taken for several months, the petitioners approached the court again seeking contempt proceedings.
During the latest hearing, Justice Kaja Sarath took a serious view of the delay. While the government’s counsel requested four more weeks to comply, the judge granted the extension but made it clear that failure to implement the order would result in the Finance Secretary’s personal appearance before the court.