VIJAYAWADA: The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Wednesday sought to know how Additional Advocate General (AAG) Ponnavolu Sudhakar Reddy holding a press conference to divulge information about the AP State Skill Development Corporation case was a violation of law.
AP United Forum for RTI Campaign president N Satyanarayana filed a public interest litigation in the High Court seeking a gag order on AAG Sudhakar Reddy and APCID chief N Sanjay from disclosing any details of the APSSDC case or any other case.
A division bench of Chief Justice Dhiraj Singh Thakur and Justice Rao Raghunandan Rao hearing the PIL, questioned the petitioner in which way the AAG holding a press conference was a violation of law. “Are there any legal provisions that prevent the AAG from holding a press conference?” it asked the petitioner and said if there are any such provisions, they should be submitted to the court.
Further, the court directed the petitioner to submit the English transcript of the details of the media conference addressed by Sudhakar Reddy. Only after going through such details, it could be decided as to whether what was divulged by the AAG is right or wrong. The case hearing was posted to November 8.
Earlier, the petitioner’s counsel argued that the AAG held a press conference in New Delhi, along with APCID chief Sanjay as part of the ‘regime revenge’ against TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu in the APSSDC case and wasted taxpayers’ money.
He further informed that Sudhakar Reddy had stated that he would do anything for Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, which is against the service rules. Intervening at that point, the bench sought to know if there was any evidence that the taxpayers’ money was used for the media conference. Responding to it, the petitioner’s counsel said they sought information under the RTI Act, but are yet to get it.