Bench orders govt to refund bar licence deposits
A bench of the High Court comprising Chief Justice Ujjal Bhuyan and Justice N Tukaramji at the Telangana High Court on Wednesday rejected an appeal by the State government against a single judge orders that it has to reimburse the Rs 1 lakh to all those who applied for bar licences in Manuguru of Bhadradri Kothagudem district. Petitioners Tellam Rajkumar and 57 others sought 2-B bar licence and paid an application cost of Rs 1 lakh apiece. Members from the tribal group have complained that since Manuguru was declared a municipality, they have been forced to pay higher taxes, which they are unable to pay. After hearing the case, the single judge suspended all further proceedings. Owing to the stay on notification, the 2-B bar licence was not given. Petitioners asked the court to refund their application cost. During the petitioner’s hearing, the court ordered the respondent excise authorities to repay the application fee within four weeks.
TSRTC appeal on caste certificate case dismissed
A bench of the High Court made it clear that individuals facing an inquiry into accusations of a fraudulent caste certificate must be given a copy of the inquiry report generated by the District Level Caste Inspection Committee. The bench was hearing an appeal filed by the TSRTC against the orders of a single judge directing it to rehire one K Laxmi Narayana who was removed from service after being accused of providing a bogus certificate claiming to be a member of the Scheduled Tribes (Erukala). Narayana had filed the certificate when he was hired in 1993. It was established in the investigation report that he does not belong to the ST, following which he was removed from service. When he contested his removal, the single judge overturned his dismissal on the grounds that he had not been given access to the inquiry report. The single judge also ordered the TSRTC to immediately reinstate Narayana and follow due process by making the report available to him.