In an unfolding legal drama, the Supreme Court of India has scheduled a hearing on May 5 to address the plea concerning the termination of several state law officers appointed by the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government in Telangana. This follows the Congress-led government’s decision to dismiss these officers after assuming power.
The controversy began when the newly elected Congress government issued an order in June 2024 to discontinue the services of various law officers who were appointed by the former BRS administration. This move came after the legislative assembly elections in November 2023, where the Congress secured victory and sought to appoint its legal representatives.
The affected officers, led by Yendala Pradeep, have challenged their dismissals, arguing that their removal was politically motivated and unconstitutional. They claim that a change in government leadership should not affect the constitutional identity of the state, and as such, their termination was unjust.
Their initial appeals to the Telangana High Court were unsuccessful. The High Court ruled that the appointments of these law officers were based on governmental discretion and that they could be terminated with a month’s notice or equivalent honorarium as their roles were contractual and not based on an employer-employee relationship. The court also pointed out that these appointments were not made through a formal selection process, thus reinforcing the government’s authority to replace its legal officers.
During the preliminary hearing on April 17, the bench of Justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Prashant Kumar Mishra decided to postpone the plea to allow the state government’s counsel additional time to gather necessary instructions on emerging issues highlighted during the arguments.
