Justice NV Shravan Kumar has directed the registry to issue warrants against the officers and produce them before the court on Sept 7. Hyderabad: Taking a serious note of not appearing before court and non-compliance with orders despite giving several opportunities and ample time, Telangana high court has issued bailable warrants against principal secretary, finance department, Sandeep Kumar Sulthania and principal secretary, R&B department, Vikas Raj in a contempt case.
The contempt plea stems from non-compliance with an April 24, 2025 order in a writ petition, which directed authorities to deposit 50% of a decretal amount to the credit of an execution petition before the principal district judge, Gadwal, within three months. At Monday’s hearing, a counter-affidavit was filed on behalf of the finance secretary, citing limited budget availability and a backlog of pending tokens as reasons for delay, and asserting the lapse was neither wilful nor wanton. Despite notices, adjournments and the impleadment of a sixth respondent, the directions remained unfulfilled, prompting the court to initiate contempt proceedings against the senior IAS officers on Monday.
The court, however, was unimpressed. It held that contempt proceedings, being quasi-criminal, cannot be answered through a proxy officer, and that the govt order authorising the Japan visit did not empower anyone else to file a counter or represent the contemnor. The court further noted the absence of any concrete compliance timeline, and that the R&B secretary had not formally sought exemption from personal appearance.