Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court has held HYDRAA Commissioner AV Ranganath guilty of contempt of court for wilfully defying a judicial order, directing him to remove all structures and signages erected on seven acres of land forming part of Bathukammakunta in Amberpet and restore it to its original position within four weeks.
A bench of Justices Moushumi Bhattacharya and BR Madhusudhan Rao pronounced the verdict on Monday, March 23, in a contempt case filed by Hyderabad advocate A Sudhakar Reddy, who had accused the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) Commissioner of brazenly breaching an interim status quo order issued by the court on June 12, 2025, in a Civil Miscellaneous Appeal.
The bench, however, chose not to send the Commissioner to prison, holding that while a fine would be too lenient for such “contumacious violation,” imprisonment would be too harsh and would serve neither the cause of justice nor restore the petitioner’s rights.
“HYDRAA cannot be permitted to enjoy the fruits of its contumacious acts while admitting contempt of court,” the bench observed, invoking the principle of restitutive justice instead.
The court directed HYDRAA to restore the land to the position it was in on June 12, 2025. However, noting that the land at that point had deeply dug portions, a broken drain culvert with overflowing water and uneven surfaces with stagnant water, the bench said it would be “mindless” to order the physical unearthing of the land all over again merely for the sake of restitution, since HYDRAA had since carried out civil works and beautification on the site.
Instead, the court ordered HYDRAA to pull down all markers, signages and structures that indicated its ownership of or authority over the land, including gates, walls, boards and any signage suggesting the land was a public facility under HYDRAA’s control or that access to it was subject to designated timings.
HYDRAA must file an affidavit of compliance, the bench said, clarifying that all changes directed by the court would be subject to the final outcome of the pending Civil Miscellaneous Appeal.
The matter has been listed for April 27.
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