Forum For Good Governance urges Telangana Governor to address staff shortage at Special Courts

HYDERABAD: Stating that the delay in posting staff to the Special Court which was constituted for the disposal of cases against MPs and MLAs was leading to low conviction rates, the Forum For Good Governance (FFGG) urged Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan to order the immediate appointment of staff, including the regular public prosecutor.

The FFGG raised suspicion over the integrity of the prosecution citing the 3.5 per cent conviction rate in cases related to MLAs and MPs. In an open letter to the Governor, M Padmanabha Reddy, the secretary of FFGG, said that following the Supreme Court’s directions to set up Special Courts for the disposal of cases related to elected representatives, the State government issued GO No 15 on March 2, 2018, after constituting a special court and sanctioning as many as 30 supporting staff, but it has not been implemented so far.

He added that the cases related to MLAs and MPs are not being transferred to the Special Courts due to official apathy. “Direct the prosecution to review the acquitted/discharged cases and see that mistakes are not repeated. Just 3.5 per cent of cases getting convictions raise doubt on the integrity of the prosecution,” he said.