Telangana high court revives Kalyana Lakshmi-Shaadi Mubarak, stays single judge’s order | Hyderabad News

Hyderabad: In a major relief to the govt, Telangana high court on Tuesday stayed a single judge’s interim order that had put on hold the state’s flagship marriage assistance scheme, Kalyana Lakshmi-Shaadi Mubarak, while also suspending further proceedings in the writ petition.A division bench comprising Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice GM Mohiuddin passed the order while hearing an appeal filed by the state govt against the single judge’s ruling. “There shall be a stay of the interim order and further proceedings in the writ petition (before the single judge) also,” the bench said.Advocate general A Sudarshan Reddy, appearing for the state, argued that the scheme had been in operation since 2014 and questioned why the petitioner had approached the court only now.Questioning petitioner-advocate Vijay Gopal’s locus standi, the advocate general said, “The petitioner is a male, who is not a beneficiary in any manner, or deprived of any benefit due to this scheme; neither he has any injury nor any prejudice by them,” adding that a far-reaching public policy had been stayed by the single judge.Opposing the appeal, Vijay Gopal, who appeared in person, contended that while the Constitution mandates the upliftment of women and children, it does not permit discrimination based on gender. He said he was challenging the scheme as a citizen of the state.The bench then sought to know whether the Comptroller and Auditor General of India had made any adverse findings regarding expenditure under the scheme in the absence of legislative or constitutional backing.The judges further observed that if the CAG had pointed out irregularities in the implementation of the scheme, it could amount to unauthorised expenditure. “Then, the govt may have to face the music, whether on the floor of the assembly or in any proceeding,” the bench said.In response, Vijay Gopal said there was no specific CAG report declaring the schemes unconstitutional or lacking legal sanction, but contended that the CAG had pointed out Rs 94 crore as unaccounted expenditure linked to the scheme.The matter came up before the division bench after the state govt challenged the interim order staying the implementation of the welfare scheme.