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.
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.
“There shall be a stay of the interim order and further proceedings in the writ petition (before the single judge) also,” the bench said. 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.
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.