In a significant development on Monday, February 9, the Telangana High Court clarified that it cannot mandate the state government to provide pensions, house sites, or other benefits to those who participated in the Telangana statehood movement. The ruling came during a hearing of a petition filed by G Nagaraju and eight others seeking such directions from the government.
Justice B Vijaysen Reddy observed that there is no specific government policy currently in place to extend such benefits to Telangana movement participants. As a result, the court could not issue any binding orders on the matter. The petitioners’ counsel argued that political parties had made promises of pensions and house sites during elections for those actively involved in the movement for a separate Telangana state.
However, the court noted that participants in the Telangana movement cannot be equated with freedom fighters who fought against British or Nizam rule, implying that the two struggles have distinct historical and legal contexts.
During the hearing, the petitioners’ counsel also highlighted reports of only two individuals allegedly receiving 250-square-yard house sites and pensions, but no relevant government orders were made public. In light of these submissions, the judge directed the government counsel to obtain a detailed explanation from the state regarding letters reportedly written by a district collector in connection with the issue. The matter was adjourned to February 23 for further hearing.
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