Telangana-Centre row escalates

Nine more lower court judges were today suspended by the High Court on disciplinary grounds as the agitation against provisional allocation of judges between Andhra Pradesh and Telangana intensified with 200 judicial officers in Telangana going on mass leave for 15 days. The Telangana Judges Association also called for a `High Court Bandh' tomorrow. The development also escalated the row between Telangana Government and the Centre, with the TRS blaming the Centre for not bifurcating the HC following carving out of Telangana from undivided Andhra Pradesh in 2014. Protesting the action taken by the High Court today, about 200 judicial officers working across the state decided to go on mass leave for 15 days beginning today. The HC had yesterday suspended two lower court judges after over 100 of them took out a procession and submitted a representation on their demands to the Governor on Sunday under the banner of the Telangana Judges Association. The ruling TRS today alleged that the Centre was being "insensitive" in not bifurcating the High Court so far. TRS Lok Sabha member K Kavitha said her father and Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao even proposed to hold a protest dharna in Delhi over the issue. However, Union Law Minister D V Sadananda Gowda said the Centre had no role in the bifurcation of a high court. The state government blaming the Centre on the issue was "unacceptable and intolerable", Gowda said. He also rubbished the TRS charge that the Centre was under political pressure from Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu. "Creation of new high court for Telangana...it's in the hands of Chief Minister and Chief Justice of that high court (which is common for two states at present)," Gowda told PTI. "If the Chief Minister provides all the infrastructure and other things, rest of the things high court will take care. Simply putting the blame on the Centre, its not fair on anybody," Gowda said. "Central government has no role to play. It's not in our hands. But unnecessarily blaming the Central government, it's not fair on the part of the Chief Minister or any persons of Telangana government," the Union Minister said.