Three capitals row: Andhra Pradesh High Court to begin daily hearing from October 6

The Andhra Pradesh High Court is set to hear the petitions challenging the state capital shift from Amaravati on a daily basis from Tuesday.

The court had, in its interim orders, put a stay, barring the Jaganmohan Reddy government from any movement on the capital change.

Chief Minister Reddy is keen on relocating the executive capital to Visakhapatnam and later the judiciary to Kurnool, leaving Amaravati only as the legislative capital. Amaravati was planned as a grand, greenfield capital by Reddy’s predecessor N Chandrababu Naidu.

The contentious Andhra Pradesh Decentralization and Inclusive Development of All Regions Bill, 2020 and another one to repeal the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority Act, 2014 which rips the sole mega capital status of Amaravati, were approved by the YSRCP-dominated assembly twice - on January 20 and June 16.

Following Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan’s assent to the capital decentralization Bills; gazette notifications of the Acts were issued by the Reddy government on July 31.

However, hearing a bunch of petitions challenging the three-capital structure, the HC had, in August, put a freeze on any executive move to relocate the capital. The number of petitions – from farmers, locals, and political leaders - challenging the capital relocation has gone up to about 230 now.

The Supreme Court had, in August, declined to examine the YSRCP government’s special leave petition challenging the high court’s orders.

The high court will reportedly deal with the capital case both in virtual and conventional modes depending on the required scrutiny.