Telangana High Court questions access to Kaleshwaram report in SK Joshi plea

Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Wednesday questioned how former Irrigation Department Special Chief Secretary S.K. Joshi accessed the PC Ghose Commission’s report on the Kaleshwaram project, while hearing his petition seeking its cancellation.

Joshi had filed the plea alleging that the commission’s findings had wrongly implicated him. He argued that the report contained baseless allegations and violated legal and constitutional principles. He requested the court to issue interim orders restraining authorities from taking action against him until the case is resolved.

During the hearing, the bench asked Joshi’s counsel how the report came into their possession. In response, the lawyer said the report had been tabled in the Legislative Assembly and was available to the public. However, the court pointed out that once a report is placed before the Assembly, it becomes accessible only to public representatives not to others.

When Joshi’s lawyer said the report had been downloaded from a government website, the bench reminded him that the court had already directed the removal of that report from the public domain. The judge then asked Joshi’s counsel to file an affidavit explaining how the report was obtained.

The court adjourned the hearing by one week and directed the petitioner to submit the affidavit before the next session.