HYDERABAD: Alleging that the introduction of Dharani by the previous BRS government aggravated the situation, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, while explaining the government’s proposed measures to resolve land-related problems arising from Section 22-A of the Registration Act, traced the problem to gaps in land records dating back to the Nizam era.
Revanth told the Assembly that, unlike Andhra Pradesh, which was ruled by the British and maintained land records for tax collection, the Nizam administration had not surveyed and recorded all lands in Telangana. About 60% of the land, known as Diwani land, on which farmers paid taxes to the Nizam, had been measured and its boundaries demarcated, he said. The Record of Rights Act, 1936, applied to these lands.
The remaining 40%, comprising non-Diwani lands owned by the Nizam, had not been properly demarcated. After Independence, village-level Patel and Patwari officials were asked to prepare records based on possession and ownership between 1948 and 1954.
These records, known as Khasra Pahani, are still relied on by the government and courts to establish ownership. But the absence of clear boundaries for non-Diwani lands led to disputes. The records were maintained in Persian, Arabic and Marathi.
After NT Rama Rao became chief minister and the Patel and Patwari system was abolished, the records were transferred to mandal offices.
The chief minister alleged that the BRS government’s introduction of Dharani in the name of digitising land records removed Column 13, which recorded the name of the person enjoying the land. He said this affected SC, ST and BC communities cultivating such lands.
Revanth said the digitisation programme introduced by the Union government was intended to replicate existing paper records, but alleged that changes made in Telangana created further problems for poor landholders.
Communists raised ownership issues, Cong govts gave rights
The chief minister credited communist parties with raising land-ownership issues involving the poor and said Congress governments had enacted laws to provide land rights.
He cited the Land Ceiling Act, 1973, protection of Bhoodan lands, abolition of the Inams system and the granting of Occupancy Rights Certificates to the poor. Regulation 1 of 1970 barred non-tribals from encroaching on tribal land, while the Union government led by the Congress recognised tribal rights over forest, or podu, land in 2004.
In all, 24.55 lakh acres were distributed in plain areas and tribals received rights over 10 lakh acres of podu land, he said. Tenant farmers were recognised in the combined state through the Land Licensed Cultivators Act, 2011. “That’s why we are still able to seek votes for our party in the name of Indiramma,” Revanth said.
On Dharani, Revanth alleged that the BRS government placed land records, including bank details, Aadhaar numbers and phone numbers, under the control of IL&FS. He described the company as bankrupt and said its services had been rejected by the Odisha government.
He referred to the CAG’s observations on land-record maintenance and said the present government had transferred the work to the National Informatics Centre.
Revanth also alleged that ownership and control of the records extended to companies based in tax havens, including the Cayman Islands and British Virgin Islands.
He alleged that the BRS government repealed the Land Grabbing (Prohibition) Act, enacted in 1982 to protect government land. The Act continued under the TDP government in the undivided state but was repealed by the BRS government in 2016, he said.
Rejects BRS’ claim of 1 crore acres included in 22-A list
Rejecting the BRS’s claim that one crore acres had been brought under Section 22-A, Revanth said the prohibited list included forest, endowment, Wakf and Bhoodan lands. He put the land under dispute between the government and private individuals at 3,73,930 acres and said the BRS should write to the government seeking removal of any land it believed had been wrongly included.
The figure later rose to about 30 lakh acres after some registrars were caught accepting bribes and accused of irregularities, he said. Officials subsequently included entire survey numbers in the prohibited list even when only a portion belonged to the government. Revanth said his own property had also been included.
In some cases, the Supreme Court awarded ownership rights to the government on appeal after the High Court had ruled against it. In the intervening period, agencies such as HMDA granted permissions and people constructed houses on the land.
“How should such cases be dealt with?” Revanth asked.
He also accused the BRS of creating a disturbance outside the Assembly and abusing the Speaker after learning that its actions would be discussed.
Referring to the conduct of BRS members, Revanth said the Assembly’s rules had been framed during the BRS tenure. He said Parliament’s rules allowed members to wear T-shirts carrying slogans, whereas the Telangana Assembly’s rules did not. He said BRS members had forced themselves out of the House through their conduct after being given an opportunity to speak on Section 22-A, fee reimbursement and El Nino.
