The Andhra Pradesh high court on Tuesday fumed at the YSR Congress government for shifting some of the government offices from Amaravati to Kurnool as part of decentralisation of administration, even as the case against the shifting is pending in the court.
A division bench of the high court asked state advocate general S Sriram as to how the government could go ahead with shifting of the offices when there was a stay on the same till February 26.
The advocate general said the government would file its counter within three days.
The Jagan Mohan Reddy government on January 31 issued a GO (No. 13) directing that the offices of the Vigilance Commissioner and those of chairman and members of the Commissionerate of Inquires be shifted from interim government complex at state secretariat at Velagapudi in Amaravati to Kurnool.
The government directed that the engineer-in-chief of roads and buildings department and the collector of Kurnool take necessary steps for identifying suitable buildings at Kurnool to relocate the above offices immediately.
This was challenged by a group of farmers from Amaravati, who alleged that the shifting of offices to Kurnool was in clear violation of the orders of the state high court issued on January 23.
The farmers had already challenged the two bills -- AP Decentralisation and Inclusive Development of All Regions Bill, 2020 and the APCRDA (Repeal) Bill in the high court. The issue would come up for hearing on Wednesday.