Hyderabad, May 21: The vacation bench of the Telangana High Court on Thursday expressed serious concern over the delay in renewal and extension of Working Journalists’ Accreditation Cards issued by the Information and Public Relations Department.
The issue once again came up before the High Court after the Telangana Urdu Working Journalists’ Federation informed the court that the renewal process was still pending despite repeated assurances given earlier by the government.
The matter was previously heard on May 14 when the Federation pointed out that accredited journalists across Telangana were facing difficulties due to the non renewal of their cards.
During Thursday’s hearing, the Additional Advocate General reassured the court that the validity of Media Accreditation Cards would be extended till June 16, 2026. The government informed the bench that the extension orders would be issued by evening.
Telangana Court Questions Delay Despite Earlier Undertaking
During the proceedings, the respondent informed the Court that a list had been sought from the petitioners regarding journalists requiring extension of accreditation cards.
The Court immediately observed that the matter concerned the entire journalist fraternity and not merely the petitioners before the Court. The bench remarked that it was not appropriate to seek a list only from the petitioners when the issue affected all accredited journalists in the State.
The Court further noted that the respondent authorities had already recorded an undertaking before the Division Bench stating that the extension process would be completed by May 31, 2026. Later, pursuant to directions issued by the Court, time had been extended till June 16, 2026.
Accordingly, the Court directed the authorities to extend the accreditation cards strictly in accordance with the undertaking given before the Court and the subsequent judicial directions.
Journalists Facing Serious Difficulties
The Telangana Urdu Working Journalists Federation, along with others, has challenged GO 252 and its amendments before the High Court.
The petitioners raised concerns regarding the implementation of the Government Order and procedural irregularities linked to the issuance of accreditation cards for working journalists.
Advocate Barkat Ali Khan appeared on behalf of the Federation during the hearing.
The Court asked the petitioner whether the non extention of accreditation cards was causing hardship to journalists.
Responding to the query, Advocate Barkat Ali Khan explained in detail that journalists were facing serious practical difficulties due to the delay in renewal of accreditation cards. He informed the Court that journalists were unable to freely access government departments, the Secretariat, official meetings, press briefings and other government offices for the purpose of news gathering.
He argued that the delay was directly affecting the professional functioning of journalists and amounted to a violation of their fundamental rights, including freedom of speech and expression and freedom of the press.
After hearing the submissions, the Court reportedly expressed strong displeasure towards the respondent authorities and questioned why the extention process had still not been completed despite repeated assurances and undertakings given before the Court.
The High Court is expected to continue monitoring the implementation of its directions and further hearings in the petitions challenging GO 252 and its amendments. Next hearing is on June 16, 2026.
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