HC stays action against KCR in irrigation project case

E-PaperSubscribeSubscribeEnjoy unlimited accessSubscribe Now! Get features like The Telangana high court on Wednesday ordered the state government to refrain from coercive action against former chief minister and Bharat Rashtra Samiti chief K Chandrasekhar Rao and others held responsible by the Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose Commission for alleged irregularities and lapses in the construction of the Kaleswaram lift irrigation project, people familiar with the matter said. K Chandrasekhar Rao (PTI)The division bench, consisting of Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and justice GM Mohiuddin, hearing arguments over separate petitions by KCR, his nephew and former irrigation minister T Harish Rao, senior IAS officer Smitha Sabharwal and retired IAS officer SK Joshi, also stayed the operational use of the report for further proceedings. “The judicial commission report has no value. It is fit to be thrown into the dustbin,” said senior advocate Gandra Mohan Rao, who served as KCR’s counsel. The petitioners challenged the validity of the judicial commission, appointed in March 2024 by the current Congress regime. However, the state government, represented by the advocate general, argued that due process was followed in the Commission’s appointment, adding that it was constituted in public interest. The bench observed that the Commission’s constitution was neither arbitrary, illegal nor beyond the power of the Constitution. “But the findings rendered by the Commission are prejudicial to the conduct and reputation of the petitioners and have been rendered in violation of principles of natural justice and the statutory safeguard provided under section 8B of the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952,” said the court. It also found fault with the state government’s move to place the panel’s findings in the public domain before legislative scrutiny in the assembly. Mohan Rao described the verdict as a “major relief,” stating that the report has effectively lost its enforceability. The Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS), said to be the world’s largest multi-stage lift irrigation project, was started by the then- BRS regime in May 2016. Its main component was inaugurated by then- chief minister KCR in 2019. In March 2024, the Congress government constituted the commission, headed by former Supreme Court judge PC Ghose, to probe alleged irregularities in planning, design, construction, quality control, operation and maintenance of Medigadda, Annaram, and Sundilla Barrages of the Kaleshwaram project. The commission submitted its report to the Telangana government on July 31, 2025, wherein it held KCR d accountable for irregularities in planning, execution, completion, operation and maintenance, along with Harish Rao, then chief secretary S K Joshi and then- secretary to chief minister Smitha Sabharwal. “The verdict clearly exposed political conspiracies of chief minister A Revanth Reddy,” added Harish Rao on Wednesday. He urged the Congress government to end vindictive politics and expedite repairs to the Medigadda barrage. The former minister added that the court found fault with the inquiry process, citing violations of natural justice and fundamental rights. He stated that the high court invalidated adverse remarks in the Commission’s report and barred any action based on its findings. BRS working president K T Rama Rao also welcomed the high court’s stay on the Ghose Commission report, calling it a tight slap in the face of the Congress government. “Right from the beginning, we have been saying that the report was politically motivated. The judgment affirms that constitutional institutions cannot be misused for narrow political gains,” he said. State irrigation minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy said all investigations into the project, including the earlier probes by National Dam Safety Authority, experts committee and vigilance commission indicated structural faults in three barrages – Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla. “The high court has not granted any clean chit to KCR and others. In fact, the high court upheld the constitution of the Ghose Commission and its legitimacy,” he said, adding that the state cabinet would deliberate on the court’s verdict in its meeting on Thursday. Srinivasa Rao is Senior Assistant Editor based out of Hyderabad covering developments in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana . He has over three decades of reporting experience.