A division bench of the Telangana High Court set aside the orders passed by the High Courts of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh rejecting the request of 10 retired employees of the erstwhile Hyderabad HC for Telangana and Andhra Pradesh to opt for Andhra Praresh High Court at Amaravati.

The judgment was delivered by a division bench of Justices M. S. Ramachandra Rao and T. Amarnath Goud in a writ petition filed by 10 retired employees of the erstwhile Hyderabad High Court.

The petitioners, who had retired before November 1, 2018, contended that not giving them an opportunity to opt for Andhra Pradesh High Court at Amaravati was unconstitutional.

Pronouncing the verdict, the bench said the Telangana HC had the jurisdiction to entertain and adjudicate the petition. The bench made it clear that November 1, 2019, (the date on which Andhra Pradesh High Court at Amaravati was constituted) could not be the ‘appointed day’ as per Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act.

“We declare that there can be only one ‘appointed day’, which is June 2, 2014, and November 1, 2019, cannot be the ‘appointed day’ with regard to employees of erstwhile Hyderabad HC,” the judgment said.

‘Single class’

All employees of the composite Hyderabad HC as on June 2, 2014 constitute a ‘single class’. Exclusion of persons who retired before November 1, 2018, was violation of the Constitution, the order said. The Hyderabad HC had erred in law by declaring that only those employees who were working with it as on November 1, 2018, were eligible to be given an option to opt for either the Telangana HC or AP HC (which were supposed to be created subsequently), the judgment said.

The bench directed that Registrars-General of both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh High Courts should pay ₹ 3,000 towards costs to each of the 10 petitioners within four weeks since they were denied the right to exercise the option of choosing the HC.

The verdict said the petitioners were deemed to have been allotted by the Union of India to the AP HC at Amaravati.

Since the AP government enhanced the retirement age from 58 years to 60 years, the HCs of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh were directed to pay in 1:1 ratio the salaries and other benefits the petitioners would have earned from January 1, 2019. (when Andhra Pradesh High Court at Amaravati came into existence) till reaching the age of superannuation of 60 years. An interest of six percent should be paid to them from the date on which the said payments were due.