Kancha Gachibowli Case: Telangana High Court Defers Hearing Till April 24, Notes Supreme Court Is Seized Of The Issue

The Telangana High Court on Monday (April 7) deferred till April 24 hearing of various petitions filed with respect to tree felling at State's Kancha Gachibowli forest area near the Hyderabad Central University campus.

At the outset a division bench of Acting Chief Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Renuka Yara was informed that the matter was listed today for response by the State, which has not been filed yet. The bench was dealing with a petition filed by Vata Foundation against a government order stated to be alienating 400 acres of green cover land in the area for setting up IT infrastructure. The court was also hearing another PIL filed by a retired scientist Kalapala Babu Rao seeking similar reliefs, and a plea by Student's Union claiming that the land belongs to the University. 

"Parties have jointly agreed, list this matter on April 24. In the meantime it will be open for the respondents to file their respective counters/records," the court said. 

Meanwhile senior advocate S Niranjan Reddy appearing for one of the petitioner's Vata Foundation submitted that, "After your lordships directed the state to file a counter (on April 3), in the afternoon a report of this hon'ble court's Registrar was placed before the hon'ble Supreme Court...The Supreme Court is now seized of the matter. It has directed a further enquiry into the...Since the Supreme Court is now seized of the issue directly, has granted a protective interim order in the meantime, I would...submit maybe matter be left to be decided by the Supreme Court". 

The court at this stage said that if all the parties agreed it shall defer the hearing. "Since Supreme Court has taken up the matter all of you agree we will keep it after vacations," the bench orally said. 

Notably, the Supreme Court had on April 3 expressed shock at the large-scale felling of trees in the Kancha Gachibowli area in Hyderabad, and ordered to stop all sorts of developmental activities carried out there. 

Meanwhile senior advocate Menaka Guruswamy appearing for the state government's forest department submitted, "The Supreme Court is seized of the matter. There is a different point of grave concern. This legal case is being turned into fake news, it is being used to tear apart the social fabric. I take permission to file preliminary report on behalf of police on how fake news is being generated to instil and inspire a certain kind of breakdown of social fabric".

At this stage the court orally said, "This is not your petition. You are not petitioner before us. You file your counter, whatever you want to say". 

The centre's counsel at this stage said that the central government had also asked the state government to furnish a report. 

The court also listed the plea filed by the Student's Union on April 24. 

On April 2, the court had listed the matter for April 3 and till then had directed that "no coercive steps" will be taken by the State. This protection was thereafter extended by the high court. 

Meanwhile the Supreme Court had taken up the matter suo motu on April 3 and had asked the state's Chief Secretary to file an affidavit answering the following specific queries:

1. What was the compelling urgency to undertake the developmental activities including the removal of trees from the alleged forest area?

2. Whether for such development activity, the State has obtained the Environmental Impact Assessment certification. Whether for felling the trees, requisite permissions from the forest authorities, or any other local statutes have been obtained or not?

3. What is the necessity of having officers(specified in the order) in the committee constituted by the State of Telangana in as much as prima facie they have nothing to do with the identification of forests? 

4. What the State is doing with the felled trees?

Earlier that day the apex court had passed an interim order staying tree felling in the area and directed the Registrar (Judicial) of the High Court to inspect the site and submit a report by 3:30 PM on April 3. 

When the matter was taken up the apex court  noted that the Registrar (Judicial) has filed a report, which revealed that huge development activity was being undertaken in the area.

Case title: Vata Foundation ENPO vs. State of Telangana and batch