Forum for Good Governance (FGG) has filed a PIL petition in Telangana High Court seeking a direction to the State government for constitution of a special Task Force for completion of trial of all criminal cases against MsP and MsLA within a year.
A voluntary organisation, FGG asked the court to instruct the government to appoint a public prosecutor and staff members to the Special Court to try cases against MsP and MsLA. It also wanted the government to update the HC about the progress in the trial of these criminal cases every month.
‘Inaction illegal’
Seeking to declare inaction of the government on the matter as illegal, the petitioner requested the court to direct the government to initiate immediate steps for completion of trial of all criminal cases involving MsP and MsLA.
Stressing the need for constitution of a special Task Force, FGG secretary M. Padmanabha Reddy said in the petition that seven criminal cases were pending against seven Ministers of Telangana Cabinet and the Chief Minister.
In majority of the cases, the Station House Officer who is supposed to investigate the cases would be working at the pleasure of the local MLA or Minister, the petitioner said. Under such circumstances, the investigators would tend to drag the cases and would not take interest in successful prosecution of the case against the public representative concerned.
In this backdrop, a special Task Force on the lines of an agency like Anti-Corruption Bureau was the need of the hour to probe such cases, the petitioner contended. It was stated in the plea that not all cases registered against MsP and MsLA were transferred to the Special Court.
300 cases
While there were more than 300 cases against public representatives (133 involving MsP and 150 cases involving MsLA), only 118 were transferred to the Special Court. The plea is likely to come up for hearing next week.