HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court on Thursday issued notices to the State government, directing it to file counters within four weeks in response to a PIL filed by K Maheshwar Raj, State president of All India Confederation of SC/ST Organisation, questioning the allotment of prime lands worth about Rs 500 crore in 33 district headquarters at a throwaway price of Rs 100 per square yard for construction of TRS party offices.
The notices were issued to the Chief Secretary, Commissioner CCLA, the Principal Secretary to the Revenue Department, Hyderabad Collector as well as TRS president and Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and General Secretary Srinivas Reddy.
The court was hearing the PIL filed seeking suspension of GO 47, dated May 11, 2022. As per the said GO, around 4,935 square yards of government land in NBT Nagar, Road No 12, Banjara Hills, correlated to Survey No.403/P of Shaikpet village, was allotted to the TRS for construction of its Hyderabad district office.
The court ordered the State to provide reasons for allotting 4,935 square yards of land valued at Rs 100 crore at a cost of Rs 100 per square yard, notwithstanding the fact that the open market value of the land is Rs 2 lakh per square yard.
Counsel for the petitioner, Chikkudu Prabhakar brought to the court’s attention the Apex Court’s observations in similar cases, that “the State is the legal owner of the natural resources of the State and the government is the trustee of the people and they should be used in the larger interest of the general public.”
But in this case, allotment of precious government land worth crores of rupees was made for the construction of TRS party office despite the fact a party office already existed in Jubilee Hills, he said.
The petitioner also sought suspension of GO 167, which states that all recognised political parties would receive one acre of land in 32 district headquarters at Rs 100 per square yard.