KURNOOL: State Revenue Minister and Deputy Chief Minister KE Krishna Murthy sought a report from Collector S Satyanarayana on the allegations of farmer M Venkateswarlu alias Raju begging at Velugodu mandal headquarters, in Kurnool, to raise money for paying bribes to officials.
Following the sensational news of Raju begging to pay bribes to officials, the district administration convened an internal meeting, on Friday. Revenue officials, along with their association’s representatives at Velugodu met relatives of the farmer.
According sources, District Collector S Satyanarayana and Joint Collector Pathan Setty Ravi Subhash held a meeting with revenue officials and asked them to resolve the issue by taking land records prior to 1954 as authentic. Krishna Murthy, who hails from Kurnool district, was unhappy at the development in the Revenue department.
Speaking to TNIE, District Revenue Association president Rajasekhar Babu said that the farmer had no land at all as per the records. “He is creating a nuisance to bring disrepute to the department. The revenue has no jurisdiction and the officers are upright who go by the rule book,” Rajasekhar Babu added.
He said the association was mulling the possibility of slapping a defamation case against the farmer. He clarified that the farmer’s grandfather had 23 acres, which was further divided among the family members. “Raju had sold 7.95 acres and gave another 2 acres for cultivation to tenant farmers,” the official said.
Meanwhile, YSR Congress Party Kurnool parliamentary president BY Ramaiah criticised the ruling party leaders and activists saying they were in the business of creating false land records and usurping them in connivance with revenue officials. He demanded an immediate response.