With the decks cleared for functioning of separate high courts of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana from New Year, employees and lawyers of Andhra Pradesh at the High Court of Judicature in Hyderabad left for Andhra Pradesh’s capital Amaravati on Monday.
About 900 employees left for Amaravati in special buses as their Telangana counterparts saw them off. Some employees turned emotional on leaving Hyderabad.
The Hyderabad High Court has been serving as the common High Court for both the Telugu states since June 2014 when Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated to carve out Telangana state.
Earlier, the Supreme Court refused to take up for immediate hearing a petition filed by Andhra Pradesh Lawyers Association for postponing shifting of High Court to Amaravati till the construction of High Court building was completed there.
The Supreme Court will take up the petition for hearing on Wednesday. The petitioners say that completion of High Court building could take about 10 months. The Centre had last week issued a notification for bifurcation of the High Court between the two states.
The gazette notification said January 1 would be the appointed day for the Andhra Pradesh High Court, which will start functioning from Amaravati, while the High Court of Judicature at Hyderabad will become the High Court for Telangana.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had criticised the Centre for not giving sufficient time to make preparations for shifting of the High Court. He said 15 days to a month should have been given so that employees prepare themselves mentally for shifting to Amaravati.
Naidu said as the completion of building for High Court could take some time, it would start functioning from the building which earlier housed Chief Minister's official residence.
He had said on Friday that efforts were being made to provide suitable accommodation to judges and other court officials.