Miyapur Land Scam- India’s latest massive scam of Rs 15,000 crores-making Robert Vadra illegal land deals look ridiculously minuscule.
The promise of the CM, KCR to make a ‘Bangaru Telangana’ (Golden Telangana ) became a nightmare. To begin with, let me start this column on the sensational land scam in Telangana State with a good pitch. I have been keenly observing the KCR and KTR duo’s appreciable work in IT sector, in upgrading the state Government’s websites, public service portals etc. It is all a delight. Pay taxes online, get the receipt online, get the EC of any property online, get a copy of registered documents of any property, online, and all now just a click away.
It is well known that Hyderabad has become fast growing IT hub, with IT exports touching $7 billion in 2014. The combined IT Exports of Telangana and Karnataka was around Rs 10,000 crores in 2014-15. Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has unveiled the Telangana ICT policy 2016. It is proposed to transform Telangana into a global hub for technology entrepreneurship and innovation in the country. Both CM and his son Minister K.T Rama Rao (Minister-IT and MAUD) working hard to accomplish this dream.
Growing IT sector means growing demand for infrastructure facilities and land. This is common all over India, be it Gurgaon, Noida, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore etc.
In this backdrop, this massive Miyapur and Ibrahimpatnam land scams, which were surfaced last month, have hit the Government very hard.
This scam has eroded the image of the newly formed TRS Government. TRS, in the beginning, had promised a ‘Bangaru Telangana’ (meaning ‘Golden Telangana’) but now everyone is wondering where the state is heading?
Miyapur is strategically located in North of Hyderabad on NH65, the Pune-Hyderabad-Machilipatnam highway. It has connectivity via the Miyapur-Gachibowli and Miyapur-Kompally intermediate ring roads, and developments like the Hyderabad Metro and ICBT. Miyapur is one of Hyderabad’s busiest places at the head of the Miyapur – L. B. Nagar high-density traffic corridor and its Industrial facilities include IT, pharmaceutical, apparel and industrial development areas.
On 28th May 2017, the Kukatpally sub-registrar Mr Rachakonda Srinivasa Rao, was arrested for illegally registering 693 acres of government lands in Miyapur village in the names of two businessmen, thereby causing a loss of over 587.11 crores to the state government. The Kukatpally police also arrested the two businessmen who got the lands registered illegally in their names. The illegal registrations took place in January 2016.
On May 25, a police complaint was filed by the Medchal district registrar N Saidi Reddy, alleging that one PS Parthasarathi (60), director of Trinity Infra Ventures, had illegally executed four land documents pertaining to 693 acres of government land at Miyapur in Serilingampally Mandal in favour of another company that is ‘Suvishal Power Gen Ltd, represented by PVS Sharma (72). The District Registrar was in fact alerted by an Internal Audit report, which pointed out that the lands that changed hands were Government lands.
A case was registered by Kukatpally Police u/ Sections 409, 418, 419, 420, 423, 467, 468, 471 and 120(B) of IPC, and Section 82 of the Registration Act. Further investigations have revealed many dubious deeds.
In the year 2007, Serilingampally Deputy Collector had issued a memo to the joint sub-registrar of registration and stamps department and again in 2011, stating that the lands claimed by the then owners were Government lands. But despite this memo being in force, Parthasarathi obtained GPA, from one Ameerunnisa ( or Hameedunnissa Begum, to check it later below) and seven others in January 2016 and executed a sale deed within a week in favour of PVS Sharma on 21st January 2016.
P S Prasad of Goldstone Infratech was suspected to be the kingpin behind this land scam. PS Prasad now a fugitive.
In Ibrahimpatnam land scam the TRS MP Kesava Rao’s family was involved.
Out of 50 acres they purchased, 35 acres were forest land in Hafeezpur village in Ibrahimpatnam Mandal near Hyderabad. This scam too came to fore after an Internal Audit report submitted to the Government.
Keshava Rao’s daughter Vijaya Laxmi, daughter-in-law Nava Jyothi and one Jyotsna purchased the land in 2013 which was registered three years later. Incidentally, Vijaya Laxmi is also a politician and a TRS corporator in Hyderabad. The delay was on account of the then sub-registrar of Ibrahimpatnam, Madhusudhan Reddy, rejecting the application to register the land because it was government land.
As Keshava Rao’s application for registration was rejected, he approached the High Court in December 2015, with a plea to set aside the rejection order as illegal. In the meantime in 2016, the lands were registered in the family members names, during which period the in-charge Registrar Saleha Qadeer completed the registration formalities. Saleha Qadeer since been suspended.
The opposition BJP has pointed out that the High Court website, still displaying the petition filed by Keshav Rao, as pending as on 1st June 2017.
If we go back a little in the past, in June 2015, a complaint was filed by one Hameedunnissa Begum, ( Ameerunnisa ?) with Revenue Minister and Dy CM, Mahmood Ali.
In her complaint, she accused Prasad of having forged documents of her lands in Ranga Reddy district and said the district registrar had confirmed the forgery. No action appears to have been taken by the Minister then. However, it is interesting to note that within 6 months, in January 2016, the 693 acres of land got registered on the basis of a Power of Attorney executed by Ameerunnisa in favour Suvishal Power Gen Ltd. This went on smoothly as they colluded with the sub-registrar Mr Rachakonda Srinivasa Rao. ( who is now behind bars )
Gold Stone Infratech owner Mr PS Prasad’s modus operandi was to target lands belonging to descendants of the Nizam of Hyderabad. (The Paigas were known as the nobles under the then rulers Nizams) Subsequent to the merger of Hyderabad with the Indian Union in 1948, these properties were taken over by the government and recorded in a blue book.
In Hyderabad and surrounding districts, the majority of lands were ‘Inam’ lands donated by the Nizam’s to their adherents, unlike in many other metros where the land was directly owned by the Government.
It is interesting to note that all efforts and attempts were made to register these Government lands in Miyapur and Ibrahimpatnam, in the name of few individuals and politicians only during 2015 and 2016. Prior to June 2014 (KCR Govt), the grave warning memos which were issued in 2007 and 2011 were lying on the tables of all the sub-registrar offices in Hyderabad and suburban areas, callously ignored. The land sharks woke up in 2015 and 2016. Added to this the Dy CM’s ominous failure in acting on the complaint filed in June 2015, by Hameedunnisa Begum (Ameerunnisa ?) and ignoring the PS Prasad, the brain behind this mega land scam, (who is now absconding) were all pointing a finger towards the present Government.
There was a lack of coordination among various sub-registrar offices across Telangana State. This chaos was created on account of the Governments decision to implement ‘any property anywhere registration’ facility. This was a foolish move and not only costed the ex-chequer, but eroded the present Government’s image too.
693 acres of Govt land worth Rs 587 crores gone into private hands on payment of a meagre Rs 65 lakhs stamp duty.
This is believed to be a tip of an iceberg, and Congress leaders allege that this could stretch up to Rs 15000 crores, once the inquiry is completed.
CM KCR was no way in ‘baap se poocho’ mood. After the arrest of a sub-registrar, KCR has alerted the ACB, and armed them with warrants to search all the suspected sub-registrars residences, office premises. The search yielded in huge disproportionate assets, Gold, cash, and more murky deals
In all, over 72 sub-registrars were transferred in one go. CM ordered to swap all city sub-registrars with the rural, district areas officers.
And the ACB raids on sub-registrars and their associates yielding staggering assets for filing air tight DA cases against them.
1) sub registrar R. Srinivasa Rao
Rs 14 crors DA “He invested `19 crore in Hasini Power Projects, `1.93 crore in North Star Homes, `50 lakh in Manjeera Holdings and `8.5 crore in I-Con Construction Company Pvt Ltd. It also came to light that Rao, his family members and the benamis were in possession of six plots worth about `1.27 crore and 11 acres of land at Moosapet village worth `11.52 lakh and sub-registrar TV Ramesh Chandra Reddy > DA Rs 10 crores.
The raids and investigations are still going on. A complete picture would be expected soon.