SC declines PIL on Telangana

New Delhi, Nov 18: The

on Monday declined to entertain a PIL challenging the cabinet decision to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh to carve out a new state of

.

The petition was filed by D A Somayajulu, currently serving as a member of Political Affairs Committee of YSR Congress, challenging the Centre's move to carve out Telangana from Andhra Pradesh, saying it was an arbitrary and irrational decision resulting in large scale protests, loss of life and revenue across the state.

The petition had sought directions for declaring the Cabinet resolution of 3 October as being unconstitutional.

It had also sought direction for restraining the President from initiating any recommendation in terms of Article 3 for the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh and creating Telangana until a rational policy on the creation of states is laid down.

Further, the petition had said the present decision to divide Andhra Pradesh is clearly based on political motivations of the Congress that leads the coalition government at the Centre and cannot be defended against a challenge based on Article 14 of the Constitution.

The petition, which was settled by senior advocate Harish Salve, had contended that "Article 3 of the Constitution cannot be invoked as a political tool to cleave a political division for the purposes of the party at the Centre".

"We decline to entertain the petition. However, we clarify that the legal questions raised in the petition will be open for arguments at an appropriate stage in an appropriate writ petition," said the apex court bench of Justice H.L. Dattu and Justice Madan B. Lokur.

At the outset of the hearing, Justice Dattu told a batch of petitioners: "This is only a cabinet decision. This petition is premature. We don't know the mind of state legislature or that of parliament on what they are going to do."

PTI, IANS