Telangana revenue minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy rejects claims on 22-A, slams BRS | Hyderabad News
Hyderabad: Launching a scathing attack on BRS leaders, revenue minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy alleged that the BRS had resorted to large-scale land scams by using the Dharani portal. He said the previous govt was also responsible for the issues concerning 22-A prohibited properties. He added that the state govt would come up with solutions for certain properties, particularly those in colonies where people have been living for several decades, but which are now classified under 22A due to urban ceiling, assigned land and govt land-related issues. He said many of the lands cited by opposition leaders had been on the 22-A list for several years and were not newly added by the Congress govt. During his three-and-a-half hour speech initiating a debate on 22A prohibited properties in the assembly on Saturday, the minister responded to the criticism and claims made by BRS leader Harish Rao, BJP MP Raghunandan Rao, BJP MLA Maheshwar Reddy and other opposition leaders. He used video clips and official records to challenge what he described as misinformation. He said the 22A system had existed in the united Andhra Pradesh since 2007 and had been continued by the previous BRS govt.Giving statistics on govt lands and lands classified as prohibited properties, the minister said that when the Congress govt assumed office on Dec 7, 2023, there were 1,02,52,690 acres under 22A, including various categories of land. As of Aug 31, of this year, the figure stood at 1,02,05,250 acres, a reduction of 47,440 acres. “How was it justified to spread misinformation claiming that lakhs of crores of acres had been added to 22A when the actual figures showed a reduction? The opposition parties created panic among the people,” he said.He admitted that there were some technical errors and non updating of records while the 22-A lists were uploaded by district collectors in Dec 2025 following the high court orders. “We have started rectifying the mistakes, especially in the CURE-area districts of Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Medchal-Malkajgiri and Sangareddy districts,” the minister said.Srinivas Reddy rejected claims that the 22A issue had caused a decline in registration revenue. He said registration revenue increased from Rs 6,216 crore during April-Aug 2025 to Rs 7,575 crore during the same period in 2026, an increase of approximately Rs 1,359 crore. “This clearly shows that the claims that registrations had been severely affected by the 22A restrictions were wrong,” he said.
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