SC dismisses PIL against Telangana decision

The Supreme Court Monday described as "premature" a PIL challenging the move to create a separate Telangana state as it dismissed the plea.

Dismissing the PIL as withdrawn, a bench of Justice H.L. Dattu and Justice S.J. Mukhopadhaya said there were several steps to be taken before a separate state of Telangana becomes a reality.

The court said that after the central government takes a decision, there are further steps after which final decision can be reached that will create a new state. "Has that last stage been reached," asked Justice Dattu.

As PIL petitioner advocate P.V. Krishnaiah pressed his plea, the court also said that when the proposal goes before parliament, it may or may not be accepted, indicating that it was too early for it to entertain such a plea.

Asking Krishnaiah to read the prayer of his PIL, the court asked him whether that could not have been entertained by the high court.

The PIL petitioner has sought direction that the central government had no powers under Article 3 of the Constitution to create Telangana by bifurcating Andhra Pradesh.

He said that Andhra Pradesh was formed on Nov 11, 1956, by merging the Andhra state with part of the Hyderabad State - that represented Telangana region - based on the linguistic criteria.

The PIL said that the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh by creating Telangana would violate the fundamental rights the people belonging to backward areas and districtS irrespective of regions as they would be deprived of special reservations provided to local candidates under article 371 D of the Constitution of India.

Krishnaiah contended that central government had no justification to create a separate Telangana state without having material to establish the necessity to form new state instead of forming the new state only based on political advantage or political demands.