Telangana High Court says Minister Sridhar Babu should face probe for hindering Kaleshwaram public hearing

The Telangana High Court has clarified that IT Minister Duddilla Sridhar Babu must face investigation in a case related to hindering the environmental public hearing for the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project.

By LEGAL CORRESPONDENT

Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court has clarified that IT Minister Duddilla Sridhar Babu must face investigation in a case related to hindering the environmental public hearing for the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project.

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The court upheld the trial court’s decision and dismissed Sridhar Babu’s petition seeking to quash the case against him. The case stems from a 2017 incident in which Sridhar Babu and over 300 Congress party members were accused of obstructing the environmental public hearing for the Kaleshwaram project in the Peddapalli district. The Basanthnagar police had registered criminal cases against the group, including charges under sections 147 (rioting) and 353 (obstructing a public servant in the discharge of their duties) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), based on a complaint filed by an irrigation engineer from Kottaram Mandal and the officer in charge of the public consultation.

Sridhar Babu, who denied any involvement in the case, had approached the trial court seeking to have his name removed from the First Information Report (FIR). However, the trial court rejected his petition. Subsequently, Sridhar Babu challenged the trial court’s order by filing a petition in the High Court. In the latest development, Justice K. Lakshman reserved his judgment on the petition on December 13, and the final order was delivered on Monday. The High Court upheld the trial court’s decision and reiterated that Sridhar Babu must face the investigation as per the charges.

In a related petition filed on December 13 on the same crime, Sridhar Babu’s counsel, Advocate Dharmesh DK Jaishwal, argued that the case was politically motivated and requested the High Court to quash the charges. Justice Lakshman, while hearing the arguments, granted Sridhar Babu exemption from personal appearance before the trial court but directed that notices be issued to the police and irrigation department officials, including Executive Engineer Mallikarjuna Prasad. The High Court has also directed the respondents to file their counter-affidavits and adjourned the further hearing.