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IN THE HIGH COURT FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA AT HYDERABAD THE HONOURABLE THE ACTING CHIEF JUSTICE P.SAM KOSHY AND THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE NARSING RAO NANDIKONDA Writ Petition No.13352 of 2025 CNR.No.HBHC010200052025 Date of Order: 03.11.2026 Reserved on: 09.07.2026 Pronounced on: 03.11.2026 Uploaded on : 04.11.2026 Between:

Vijay Gopal …Petitioner AND The State of Telangana, Law Department, Rep. by Secretary to Government Legal Affairs Legislative Affairs and Justice Law Department, Dr. B. R.Ambedkar, Telangana State, Secretariat, Saifabad, Hyderabad, Telangana - 500022 and three others.

…Respondents ORDER: (per Hon’ble the Acting Chief Justice P.Sam Koshy)

Heard Mr. Vijay Gopal, petitioner / party-in-person; and Mr.

D. Surender Kumar, learned Assistant Government Pleader for Home and Legislative Affairs appearing for respondent No.1.

2. The present is a Writ Petition which has been filed by petitioner in person, who is otherwise basically a Lawyer. The challenge is to the validity of Section 12 of the Telangana Advocates Welfare Fund Act, 1987 (for short the ‘Act of 1987’) which requires fixing of 100 INR welfare fund stamp on the Vakalat, by the name “Nyayavadula mariyu vari Gumasthala Samkshema Nidhi”, and also Section 12A of the Act which distributes the aforecollected Rs.100/- to the Telangana Advocates Fund and also to the Telangana Advocates Clerks Welfare Fund, to be arbitrary, illegal, ultra vires Section 30 of the Act of 1987 and ultra vires Article 14, 19(1)(c), 19(1)(g), 31(c), 246(1) and 254(1)

of the Constitution of India.

3. The petitioner contended that though in the Act of 1987 there was no clause which required welfare fund stamp to be affixed on any of the Vakalat filed by the lawyers; however since 1992 welfare fund is started to have been collected and the said collections were split between the Advocates and the Advocates Clerks. In the year 1992, Rs.8/- stamp was affixed, of which Rs.6/- would go to the Advocates Welfare Fund and Rs.2/- for the Advocates Clerks Welfare Fund. This amount stood enhanced to Rs.12/- in the year 1998 with a split of 10:2 between the Advocates and the Advocates Clerks. This amount was subsequently enhanced to Rs.20/- in the year 2003 with a split of 15:5. Later, this amount again got enhanced to Rs.30/- in the year 2006 with a split of 25:5. This amount later got further revised in the year 2011 to Rs.50/- with a split of 43:7. This amount stood further revised to Rs.100/- with a split of 86:14, which subsequently in 2025, was further revised for the last time to Rs.250/- with a ratio of 215:35 between the Advocates and the Advocates Clerks respectively.

4. The challenge to the aforesaid provision is primarily on four basic grounds. Those are:-

i. The imposition of such stamp duty is nothing but a colourable exercise of legislation.

ii. In the teeth of the provisions of Article 244, 255 and 256 of the Constitution of India, the said provision of law under the Act of 1987 is in contradiction to the Constitution of India and therefore the said provision is bad on the ground of doctrine of repugnancy.

iii. The said provision of law is illegal and unconstitutional on applying the doctrine of severability for being violative of the fundamental right guaranteed under Article 19(1)(g) without compliance to the mandate of Article 31(c) of the Constitution of India.

iv. The entire collection of Rs.250/-, which was earlier Rs.100/-, is being paid or collected by the Bar Association is not deposited with the State Exchequer. Thus, it is violative of Article 283 of the Constitution of India.

5. The Act of 1987 was enacted by the name “Andhra Pradesh State Welfare Fund Act, 1987” which received the assent of the President of India on 23.07.1987. At the time of enactment of the Act there was no mandatory provision for the Advocates to pay the welfare fund. In due course of time, the Act of 1987 stood amended and thereby got inserted the requirement of putt