KCR’s Land Sales Model Continues Under Revanth Reddy!
All political parties seem to follow the same path. Before elections, they assure people that they will work wonders if given the opportunity to come to power. But once they take charge, the promised wonders take a back seat, while public assets are sold off indiscriminately. Despite this, they project these actions as if they are taking the state on the path of development. That is exactly what happened during the ten-year BRS rule. And now, the same trend appears to be continuing under the Congress government led by Chief Minister Revanth Reddy. BRS chief and former Chief Minister KCR repeatedly said while in power that leaders in the country had no proper plans for development, questioning why the country would be in its current state otherwise. But people have also seen for themselves the kind of “wonders” his government delivered in Telangana.
Eventually, land worth thousands of crores of rupees in Kokapet was sold to raise funds for the implementation of the Dalit Bandhu scheme. And it was not limited to Kokapet. Hundreds and thousands of acres of land under the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA), worth hundreds and thousands of crores of rupees, were sold, even through auctions on a per-square-yard basis. Without properly assessing how much land the government may need for its future requirements, whoever comes to power appears to continue the practice of selling government land. Chief Minister Revanth Reddy is also following a similar approach, with little difference from the previous BRS government. His government is selling government lands worth thousands of crores of rupees in and around Hyderabad to raise revenue. Interestingly, Revanth Reddy himself had strongly criticized and made several allegations over land sales carried out during the BRS regime.
But the BRS was no different either. Before coming to power, the party had criticized land sales in Hyderabad. However, once it came to power, it too went ahead with large-scale sales of government land. Recently, the Telangana government raised ₹1,447 crore by selling 5.38 acres of land in Raidurg. The land fetched a record price of ₹269 crore per acre. Through land auctions in Raidurg alone, the Congress government has reportedly generated more than ₹8,400 crore in revenue. These auctions are being conducted through the Telangana Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TGIIC). The Telangana government is also selling land in other areas through HMDA. Looking at all these developments, it is clear that land sales are continuing under the Congress government in much the same way as they did during the BRS regime. Political leaders are now trying to convince people that selling government land and generating revenue from public assets is evidence of good governance.
