IN THE HIGH COURT FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA AT HYDERABAD THE HON’BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE SRI APARESH KUMAR SINGH AND THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE G.M.MOHIUDDIN WRIT APPEAL No.234 of 2026 DATE: 26.02.2026 Between:

K.Narender Reddy and 12 others.

….Appellants And The State of Telangana, represented by its Principal Secretary, Department of Home (Services-V), Secretariat, Hyderabad and 7 others.

….Respondents

JUDGMENT

Heard Sri P.Amarender, learned counsel for the appellants and Sri S.Rahul Reddy, learned Special Government Pleader in the office of the Additional Advocate General appearing for the respondents and perused the record.

2. This writ appeal, preferred under Clause 15 of the Letters Patent, assails the order dated 23.01.2026 passed by the learned Single Judge in W.P.No.34648 of 2024. By the said order, the learned Single Judge dismissed the writ petition filed by the appellants herein, challenging G.O.Ms.No.33, Home (Legal) Department, dated 15.05.2023, and the consequential allotment orders dated 18.10.2024 issued by respondent No.3. The appellants had also sought a direction to the respondents to allot them to Contiguous Zonal Cadre-

II (CZC-II) in accordance with the options exercised by them.

Factual background (in brief)

3. The appellants were initially appointed as Police Constables in the 10^th (IR) Battalion, APSP, Beechpally, in the erstwhile Mahabubnagar District (presently Gadwal District) in the year 1995. They belong to the erstwhile Zone-VI, particularly Mahabubnagar District. In due course, the appellants were promoted as Head Constables during the period 2002–2005.

4. On 05.01.2018, by proceedings issued by the Inspector General of Police (IG), Telangana State Special Police Battalions (TSSPB), Hyderabad, the appellants, who were then working as Head Constables in the 10th Battalion, were transferred on a temporary basis to newly formed IR Battalions.

5. Pursuant thereto, appellant Nos.1, 2, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12 and 13 were transferred to the 6^th Battalion; appellant Nos.3, 4 and 5 to the 5^th Battalion; and appellant No.9 to the 2^nd Battalion. Shortly thereafter, on 31.01.2018, the appellants were promoted to the post of Assistant Reserve Sub-Inspectors (ARSIs).

6. Subsequently, the Telangana Public Employment (Organization of Local Cadres and Regulation of Direct Recruitment) Order, 2018 (for short “Presidential Order, 2018”) was issued by the President of India on 29.08.2018 and republished by the State Government vide G.O.Ms.No.124 dated 30.08.2018. In terms of para 3(1) of the said Order, which required the State Government to organize local cadres within 36 months, the Government issued G.O.Ms.No.172, General Administration (SPF-II) Department, dated 04.08.2021, whereby the posts of Head Constables and ARSIs in the TSSPB were organized into Contiguous Zonal Cadres (CZCs), namely CZC-I and CZC-II.

7. Thereafter, guidelines for allotment of personnel to the newly organized local cadres were issued vide G.O.Ms.No.317, General Administration (SPF-I) Department, dated 06.12.2021. In accordance with the said guidelines, the appellants submitted their option forms seeking allotment to Contiguous Zonal Cadre-II (CZC-II), which comprises Zone-V (Yadadri), Zone-VI (Charminar) and Zone-VII (Jogulamba), covering the area of their native Mahabubnagar District. 8. However, the Government subsequently issued G.O.Ms.No.33, Home (Legal) Department, dated 15.05.2023, approving a proposal of the Director General of Police (DGP) that allotment of personnel in the TSSPB to the newly organized local cadres be made with reference to the territorial location of the Battalion in which they were serving, having regard to administrative exigencies. Consequent thereto, the 3^rd respondent, by proceedings dated 18.10.2024, allotted the appellants to CZC-I.

9. Aggrieved thereby, the appellants instituted W.P.No.34648 of 2024 challenging the said Government Order and the consequential allotment proceedings. The learned Single Judge, upon considera