Rangareddy district adjacent to Hyderabad has become a den for land grabbers. With real estate boom in full swing and land prices going through the roof, land sharks are busy fabricating fake records, bogus certificates, land conversion documents and tampering revenue records in connivance with revenue and other officials. Allegations of revenue offices becoming hubs of these nefarious activities are abound. Recent arrest of two tahsildars by Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) and the gruesome incident of a revenue official burnt alive in her own chambers are signs of the rot in the revenue system.
Major bust in Keesara
Keesara Tahsildar B Nagaraju was caught by ACB while accepting a bribe of Rs 1.10 crore. He reportedly demanded Rs 2 crore for tampering land records of original title holders in favour of realtors and handing over the documents to them. ACB officials swung into action after a tip off over a major scam though no one had lodged a complaint. They caught Nagaraju, Srinath Yadav and Anjireddy in a raid on the office of realtor Anjireddy’s guest office. The arrest and the huge bundles of currency notes caught in the case was talk of the town for a few days. ACB earned praise from public for the proactive manner with which it busted the racket.
Shaikpet scam
Before Nagaraju’s arrest, Shaikpet land grab hit the headlines. ACB officials arrested revenue inspector Nagarjuna in the Rs. 50 crore land scam in Banjara Hills. Many surprising facts came out during the questioning of Nagarjuna. It was revealed that Shaikpet Tahsildar, who originally filed a complaint on the land grab attempt, has had a role in the scam. When ACB officials took her into custody and searched her house, they came upon Rs 30 lakh cash and a huge amount of gold and other valuables.
Tahsildar burnt alive
The incident of an aggrieved petitioner burning alive Abdullapurmet Tahsildar Vijaya Reddy created a sensation across the country. The perpetrator of the crime Naresh reportedly had made umpteen rounds to the Tahsildar office to obtain the required documents in order to sell his land. He allegedly got dejected as revenue staff did not pay attention to his pleas. It is also alleged that he resorted to the extreme step of setting Tahsildar ablaze as he was vexed with the demands for bribe. But facts are yet to be established in the case as investigation is still going on. It may be recalled that Naresh too succumbed to burns later.
These incidents have further dented the already poor image of the revenue machinery in the state. Taking a cue from public sentiment, Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao at one time announced that he wants to do away with revenue department. On the other hand, revenue officials are lamenting that deeds of a few black sheep in the department are tainting the entire department. However, people say the incidents of corruption that have come out are only a tip of the iceberg and that the rot has spread across the entire body.
