AP seeks fair division of assets with TS

PNS | Hyderabad

The State of Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday filed a petition in the Supreme Court to seek a division of assets and liabilities between the Telugu States of AP and Telangana at the earliest.The State has also asked for necessary directions to ensure speedy bifurcation of assets between the two States.

The State has moved the Apex Court in a representation of the cause of its people as well as its own rights, along with the rights under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India for seeking the division of assets and liabilities between the two newly formed States.

As per the plea the division of assets and liabilities has been made under the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, but the actual division of assets has not even commenced to date. The plea claims that the assets and liabilities of not even a single Institution specified in Schedule – 9 (91 institutions) and Schedule – 10 (142 institutions) have been apportioned between the States.

It said it has approached the top court as “Parens patriae” (parent of the nation), claiming that non division of the assets has benefited Telangana since about 91 per cent of these are situated in Hyderabad.

The petition is likely to come up for hearing on Friday.”Non-apportionment of the assets has led to a multitude of issues adversely affecting and violating the fundamental and other constitutional rights of the people of the State of Andhra Pradesh including the employees of the said Institutions. “Without adequate funding and actual division of Assets in terms of the apportionment made under the Act (The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014), the functioning of the said Institutions in the State of Andhra Pradesh has been severely stunted,” the plea filed recently said.

Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated and the new state of Telangana came into existence on June 2, 2014. The petition said the employees working in state institutions (approximately 1,59,096 ) have been in a limbo since 2014 solely because there has been no proper division.

“The position of pensionable employees who have retired post bifurcation is pitiable and many of them have not received terminal benefits.