The New Indian Express ·
Politics
Revanth Reddy puts KCR family in dock, orders farmhouse probe
HYDERABAD: Directing Revenue officials to issue notices to BRS supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Wednesday ordered them to ascertain the extent of government land within the former chief minister’s farmhouse at Erravalli in Siddipet district.
He asked the officials to submit a report within 30 days and warned that action would be initiated against them, district Ministers Damodar Rajnarasimha and G Vivek, and Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy if the details were not furnished within the stipulated time.
Revanth also ordered a fact-finding committee to visit the site and identify those who allegedly grabbed government land.
Replying to the short discussion on the ‘Issues related to Section 22-A of the Registration Act’ in the State Legislative Assembly on Wednesday, Revanth said Survey No. 1944 in Erravalli, Markook mandal, had 2,447 acres of land adjoining the village. The neighbouring village is Shivar Venkatapuram. Around 295 acres overlaps between the two villages.
The land had been under dispute since 1957 over which village the 295 acres fell under. But when BRS was in power, KCR purchased the land in 2017.
“There was no problem if these lands were purchased by KCR. But there is a hidden motive in it. Under Survey No. 325, around 388 acres of government land is available. When BRS was in power, in addition to the 295 acres, the 388 acres of government land were also included and the farmhouse was set up in 700 acres. KCR should tell whether it is correct or not. I am directing the Revenue officials to issue notices immediately to KCR. How much land did KCR purchase and how much government land is there?” Revanth said.
Land near KCR’s farmhouse will be allocated to Dalits, says Revanth
Recalling the recent “purification” ritual by BRS leaders near the Erravalli farmhouse, the chief minister said government land would be distributed to the Dalits who beat drums near the farmhouse. Around 800 Dalit families would be given 0.5 acre each. “The Dalits, where they were insulted, would become landlords,” Revanth declared.
He wondered why KCR had failed to reveal the facts about his farmhouse so far. KCR and his family owned a total of 439.30 acres spread across nine districts, 24 mandals and 31 villages, the chief minister alleged.
“How did one family earn hundreds of acres in the guise of the separate Telangana movement and with the support of Dharani?” he asked.
Revanth said leaders who championed various movements for people and their rights, including Che Guevara, Dharma Bhiksham, Gaddar and Kumaram Bheem, lost everything in their struggles. “It is only KCR, who claimed himself as a Telangana movement leader, who earned thousands of crores of rupees and hundreds of acres of land. Whether those who led land struggles and armed struggles possessed lands? But how and where did KCR get those lands from?” Revanth asked.
KCR earned hundreds of acres of land in the name of the Telangana movement, he said.
On KT Rama Rao’s lands in Janwada, Revanth recalled that he was jailed for inspecting the lands as an Opposition leader. “The BRS government registered a case stating that I had planned to attack KTR with bombs by using drones. Whether KTR is like Bin Laden to kill? Even a mad dog wouldn’t bite KTR. Why would I go and kill him?” Revanth asked.
The lands allegedly owned by Rama Rao in Janwada belonged to Satyam Ramalinga Raju’s Satabhisha Agro firm, he claimed. The lands were seized by the Income Tax Department during the Satyam scam. But in 2015, the same attached lands in Survey No. 311 were transferred to Rama Rao’s wife and father-in-law. In 2019, Documents 301/6, 301/7 and 301/8 were created in the name of Rama Rao’s wife and, in January 2021, Documents 321/3/2 were created in the name of Sasirekha, his mother-in-law. The lands were later converted into a farmhouse, Revanth said.
Revanth also said former irrigation minister T Harish Rao owned a farmhouse near Ranganayaka Sagar. Officials had issued a land acquisition notification for Ranganayaka Sagar. But after Harish Rao purchased lands there, the notification was changed and certain lands were removed from the acquisition, Revanth alleged. The original notification proposed to acquire 2,212.12 acres in four villages, but only 2,183 acres were actually acquired, he said.
In Ramachan village, under Survey No. 464, officials proposed to acquire 4.20 acres but acquired only 1.29 acres. Harish Rao purchased 14 acres by paying Rs 3 lakh per acre, while the government paid Rs 6 lakh per acre as compensation, Revanth said, asking whether Harish Rao had used black money to purchase the land. Harish Rao misused his official position as irrigation minister and even got a road worth Rs 5.33 crore laid near his farmhouse, he alleged.
Revanth also said that under Transaction Module-33 (TM) of the Dharani portal, a name correction was proposed and 93.33 acres of land in the name of Hanumantha Rao was transferred to a company in which Harish Rao’s brother was a partner.
Those who lost 120 acres of land through the Dharani portal to Harish Rao’s family were even scared of lodging a complaint, he claimed.Revanth stated that MLC Elvis Stephenson regularised Rs 50 crore worth of land with just Rs 1.5 crore through CCLA proceedings during the BRS government.
BRS leader Pilot Rohith Reddy, a close friend of Rama Rao, got assigned lands and constructed a farmhouse. BRS leaders Gangula Kamalakar, E Dayakar Reddy, MLA Sudheer Reddy and others purchased 650 acres of government land in Bahadurguda. They objected to land acquisition for the bullet train hub, bus terminal, Metro Rail hub and other works and started dharnas, Revanth said.
He also said around 70 acres of Bhoodan lands in Timmapur were converted into private lands and changed hands using the Dharani portal. He alleged BJP MLC M Komuraiah had grabbed government land.
Revanth said KCR’s benami Boinapally Srinivas Rao, brother of B Vinod Kumar, got government land in Vattinagulapally in his name. Pratima Construction got Bhoodan lands on patta, Revanth said, adding that another BRS leader, Palla Rajeshwar Reddy, also purchased Bhoodan lands.
When Gandra Venkata Ramana Reddy switched loyalties to BRS from Congress, 106.34 acres of reserve forest land was converted into private land in the Bhupalpally area.
Even the district Collector, who was not a party to the matter, approached the Supreme Court and claimed that it was private land. Revanth said 1,389.36 acres of forest land in Chintalapalem mandal was converted into private land and transferred to BRS leader Talla Srinivas Rao in Nelamali village in Suryapet district. In Sircilla district, 8,000 acres of government land was transferred to different individuals through the Dharani portal, he said.
