Justice K. Lakshman of Telangana High Court on Friday directed the State government to present before the court all details connected to constitution of HYDRAA (Hyderabad Disaster Response and Assets Monitoring and Protection) along with the statute behind it.

The Judge directed nine officials, including the Chief Secretary, to file their responses by September 19 in a writ petition filed by a septuagenarian woman D. Lakshmi from Nanakramguda of Hyderabad. The petitioner challenged the legal sanctity of HYDRAA, seeking a direction to quash GO Ms. no. 99 of July 19 through which the agency was constituted.

The petitioner contended that teams of HYDRAA razed some rooms constructed in her patta land at Ailapur village of Ameenpur mandal on city outskirts coming under Sangareeddy district. Describing the demolition as illegal, the petitioner said no notice was issued by the authorities or any order for demolition by any court was not shown to her.

The GO was issued through the Executive powers conferred on the government through Article 162 of the Constitution, the petitioner’s counsel said. However, it was mandatory that such order should have been backed by a specific statute since it was applied to the specific field of illegal encroachments of water bodies, the counsel said.

According to the petitioner, the GHMC Act did not allow the government to delegate the statutory power of the civic body to another authority like HYDRAA. Thus the statutory functions assigned to GHMC cannot be delegated to any agency like HYDRAA without bringing in specific Act to that extent.

The counsel contended that the GO 99 was vague and granted unfettered discretion to HYDRAA to derive its power from any law to justify its actions. Such delegation of power without any limitations was not permitted under the law, the lawyer said.