Mon Apr 28 12:30:00 UTC 2025: **Supreme Court Rejects Plea to Include Urdu in Telangana Civil Judge Recruitment**
NEW DELHI, April 28, 2025 – The Supreme Court today dismissed a plea challenging a Telangana state rule requiring proficiency in Telugu for civil judge positions. The petitioner, a practicing advocate who passed the qualifying exam, argued that the rule, which mandates Telugu proficiency under the 2023 Telangana State Judicial (Service and Cadre) Rules, discriminated against the 15% of the state’s population that speaks Urdu. He sought the inclusion of Urdu as an acceptable language or at least the option of translating between English and Urdu in the written exam.
The Telangana High Court previously rejected the plea, stating that the employer has the right to determine service conditions and qualifications, and that the rule wasn’t arbitrary or discriminatory. The High Court also deemed the language requirement a policy decision for improving judicial administration.
The Supreme Court upheld the High Court’s decision, stating simply that the rule only requires knowledge of Telugu. The court declined to further examine the petitioner’s arguments.
First Piper 