AP Government Request For CESTAT Bench at Hyderabad

By Vijay Kumar

IT seems the Andhra Pradesh Information Technology Minister has written to the Union Finance Minister to establish a South Central Zonal Bench of the CESTAT at Hyderabad. The State Minister told the Central Minister that IT Companies in Andhra Pradesh are facing hardship in attending the Tribunal at Bengaluru and he wants a Bench at Hyderabad for "effective and speedy delivery of justice".

It is understood that the Central Government has already cleared the establishment of a Bench in Hyderabad and once it is established, the Andhra IT Minister can take credit for bringing the CESTAT Bench to Hyderabad. For nearly twenty years, there is a demand for Hyderabad Bench of CESTAT, but somehow it had been scuttled and perhaps now, the time has come to see it as a reality. CESTAT, Bangalore Bench has jurisdiction over three States – Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala.

Let us hope the CESTAT administration and the Revenue Department would take interest in opening new benches of CESTAT in Hyderabad and other major cities.