Andhra Pradesh Human Rights Commission To Be Set Up In Kurnool

AMARAVATI/KURNOOL: The State government on Friday has issued orders for  the setting up of the Andhra Pradesh Human Rights Commission (APHRC) in Kurnool. The government issued a notification designating Kurnool as the headquarters for the Human Rights Commission after the AP High Court in its order stated that it was the State government’s prerogative to set up the APHRC in any place in the State.The High Court on Thursday clarified that the state government could set up the HRC anywhere in the state and it need not be that the Commission should be set up in one particular place in the state. The High Court reminded that the Commission should be set up in the State territory and not in Telangana where the Commission is presently functioning from.

A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed over the issue of the HRC which had come up for hearing on Thursday. The State government informed the High Court that the State Cabinet decided to set up the HRC in Kurnool. Advocate General (AG) S Sriram explained that the notification given in the year 2017 for setting up of the HRC in Amravati would be amended and the latest notification for setting up in Kurnool will be issued. He said the HRC chairman and members had inspected two premises in Kurnool , but as the place was not conducive they were looking for an alternative site. He sought permission from the Court to adjourn the hearing for a month to enable the government to explain the progress of the HRC formation, to which the Bench comprising Chief Justice (CJ) Justice Arup Kumar Goswami and Justice Naina Jayasuriya agreed and adjourned the hearing till September 27.

AP Civil Rights Association Joint Secretary Malleshwara Rao had filed the PIL in the AP High Court alleging that the people of the State were inconvenienced due to the AP HRC office functioning from the State of Telangana. The AP High Court had also questioned why certain offices of AP were still functioning from Hyderabad, even as the entire administrative offices were moved to the State. The High Court had issued directions to the government to shift the remaining offices as well to AP. As the  AP HRC is a quasi-judicial body which is headed by a retired high court judge. The government had decided to shift the APSHRC office to Kurnool, as there was no specific direction that it should be moved only to Vijayawada.

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