Telangana Government to Drop Charges Against HCU Students Amid Land Dispute

Hyderabad, April 7 (NationPress) The Telangana government has decided to dismiss the legal charges against students of Hyderabad Central University following their protests against the clearing of trees on 400 acres of land located in Kancha Gachibowli near the university.

The Deputy Chief Minister, Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, instructed the police to retract the cases filed against the students.

His directives were issued during a meeting of the ministerial committee, which included D. Sridhar Babu and P. Srinivasa Reddy, along with representatives from the HCU Teachers’ Association and various civil society organizations at the state Secretariat.

The Deputy Chief Minister urged the police to take steps to clear the legal cases against two students currently in judicial custody. He also instructed the Law Department officials to ensure that there are no legal hurdles during this process.

A three-member ministerial group was established by the state government to address the land dispute, holding discussions which also featured Congress state in-charge Meenakshi Natrajan and CWC special invitee Vamshichand Reddy.

The HCU Teachers’ Association and civil society groups communicated several demands from the students to the committee.

Among these demands were the withdrawal of police presence from the HCU campus, the lifting of prohibitory orders, the dismissal of all cases against protesting students, and the prompt release of the two students in custody.

Furthermore, they requested permission for faculty and researchers to conduct a damage assessment and gather biodiversity data on the land prior to a visit by the Central Empowered Committee (CEC).

The committee was informed that the students’ Joint Action Committee did not attend the meeting due to the government's unresponsiveness to their requests.

After reviewing the demands from the HCU Teachers’ Association and civil society representatives, the ministerial committee clarified that police presence is necessary to safeguard the 400 acres of land as per a Supreme Court order.

Regarding the demand to withdraw police from the rest of the campus, the committee stated that they would send a letter to the HCU Vice-Chancellor, and that police would only be withdrawn once an assurance regarding student and hostel safety was provided.

The ministers emphasized that, in compliance with the Supreme Court ruling and until further orders, faculty, students, and others would be prohibited from surveying the 400-acre land.

While the ministers expressed their willingness to accommodate the students' request for a university visit, they decided against doing so immediately to prevent any legal complications related to the ongoing Supreme Court case.

Students, faculty, and environmental activists have been protesting against the state's plans to clear forested land for the development of IT parks.

The Supreme Court took a serious stance on the issue of tree removal on April 3, ordering the Telangana government to halt all development activities on the site until further notice.

A bench comprising Justice B. R. Gavai and Justice A. G. Masih issued this order following a report from the Registrar of the Telangana High Court.

The court noted that, irrespective of whether the land is classified as forest land, permission from the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) is required for any tree cutting. It has instructed the CEC to visit the site and submit a report by April 16.

Additionally, the court mandated the state government to file an affidavit and scheduled the next hearing for April 16.