Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Thursday, March 12, reserved its judgment until April 8 on a batch of petitions challenging the appointment and functioning of the Justice PC Ghose Commission, which was constituted by the state government to investigate alleged irregularities in the construction and management of the Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages of the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project.
The petitions were filed by former chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR), former Irrigation minister T Harish Rao, IAS officer Smita Sabharwal and former IAS officer SK Joshi.
They challenged Government Order (GO) No. 6 issued on March 14, 2024, through which the state government appointed the commission.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Apares Kumar Singh and Justice GM Mohiuddin heard arguments from both sides before reserving the verdict.
Petitioners question the inquiry process
Senior advocate Dama Seshadri Naidu, appearing for Harish Rao, said the petitioners were not questioning the government’s authority to appoint a commission of inquiry or the formation of the commission itself. Instead, the challenge was limited to alleged procedural violations in the commission’s inquiry process.
He argued that although the government claimed that the commission’s report had not caused any harm to the petitioners, they had no way of knowing what adverse material existed against them until the report became public.
According to him, details of the report were disclosed through a press conference and a PowerPoint presentation before it was formally placed before the Assembly, which he said violated the principles of natural justice.
When the bench pointed out that notices issued to Smita Sabharwal and SK Joshi appeared different, the counsel responded that the procedural framework behind all the notices remained the same.
He further argued that the commission summoned the petitioners as witnesses and later made allegations against them without giving them an opportunity to respond to specific material or testimonies.
“Had the commission informed us about the material against us and asked for explanations, we would have responded,” he said, adding that reputations were being damaged in the name of public interest.
Kaleshwaram project and cost escalation
The counsel also highlighted the importance of the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project, describing it as the world’s largest lift irrigation scheme. He said the project had provided irrigation water to more than 18 lakh acres across 13 districts and helped transform Telangana into a major grain-producing region.
Addressing criticism about the rise in project cost, he argued that cost escalation was common in large irrigation projects. He cited examples such as Nagarjuna Sagar, Sriramsagar, Yellampalli, Devadula and Pulichintala projects where costs increased significantly.
According to him, the Kaleshwaram project’s cost increased only 1.9 times compared with the initial estimate, whereas the Nagarjuna Sagar project’s cost had risen by 9.7 times.
He said the former chief minister was once hailed by the state as “Apara Bhagiratha” for completing the project and alleged that the commission’s report was made public due to political motives. He requested the court to quash the report.
Officials seek cancellation of report
Senior advocate J Ramachandra Rao and advocate Tarun G. Reddy, appearing for the officials, said they had been issued notices only as witnesses. They argued that if the commission intended to treat someone as an accused, it should have issued show-cause notices instead.
They also urged the court to set aside the commission’s report, claiming that proper procedures had not been followed during the inquiry.
After hearing arguments from both sides, the bench reserved its judgment until April 8 and asked the lawyers to submit any additional written arguments within the next couple of days.
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