Hyderabad: Telangana lawyers staged a rally at the Hyderabad High Court demanding the immediate bifurcation of the High Court. Scores of advocates practicing in the High Court and lower courts, as well as courts in other TS districts gathered at the Madina circle near the High Court on Tuesday responding to the ‘Chalo High Court’ call given by the Telangana Advocates Joint Action Committee. HC proceedings were affected due to the stir.

The agitating advocates stopped fellow advocates belonging to Telangana and AP while they were going to the High Court and requested them to support their cause. As soon as proceedings commenced at the High Court, the advocates entered court halls and urged the judges and advocates to support their cause. The lawyers also entered the CJ’s court and requested him to suspend proceedings.

CJ Kalyan Jyoti Sengupta told the advocates not to obstruct proceedings and to carry out their agitation in a peaceful manner outside the court. Following repeated pleadings from the advocates, the CJ also got down from the bench. Later the advocate took out a rally from the Bar Council to Madina circle. The agitators raised slogans seeking the immediate bifurcation of the HC and a separate Bar Council for Telangana.

Telangana advocates demanded that no judicial appointments should be done till the constitution of a separate HC for AP. They alleged that AP Chief Minister Naidu and Union Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu were creating hurdles in bifurcating the High Court.

Mild tension prevailed at the Bar Council building when some advocates forcibly removed letters from Bar Council name board. After the rally a delegation comprising Telangana Advocate General K. Ramakrishna Reddy, TAJAC leaders S. Satyam Reddy, M. Raje-nder Reddy, T. Sriranga Rao, Gandra Mohan Rao and others met the CJ and requested him to initiate steps to set up a separate HC for AP.

Later, the CJ conducted a full court meeting with all the HC judges to review the situation. The TAJAC has given a call to boycott all courts from February 2 to 4. Sources said that the CJ reviewed the situation in the subordinate courts. Later, the TAJAC called off the boycott call at the behest of Chief Minister KCR as the CJI will be in the city on Wednesday.
The CJ summoned police commissioner M. Mahender Reddy and told him to provide security to advocates.