People's Democracy

ANDHRA PRADESH

CPI(M) Demands Judicial Inquiry Into Land Acquisition & Land Grabbing

M Venugopala Rao

THE way in which the Congress government in Andhra Pradesh has been acquiring land for laying outer ring road (ORR) around the capital city of Hyderabad and for other projects has assumed scandalous proportions with its modus operandi of depriving the poor and middle class people of their land and unduly benefiting the rich and the influential. Thousands of people who lost their valuable lands and the opposition parties have been agitating for a fair deal to the people who lost their lands in this questionable process. The leaders of various opposition parties warned the government of dire consequences and intensification of agitation if it proceeded with implementation of the projects without doing justice to the oustees. 

For laying a ring road around Hyderabad, covering a distance of 162 km, the government has been acquiring 6750 acres of land in 86 villages in 12 mandals in Ranga Reddy district and in 3 mandals in Medak district. It has been acquiring thousands of acres of land for different projects like Fab City, IT, apparel and hardware parks, golf courses, townships and beautification of Moosi river etc. The media had brought out detailed stories relating to the kind of corruption and manipulations that had taken place in the course of acquisition of lands and in changing alignment of the outer ring road and in selecting places for different projects.

WHITE PAPER DEMANDED

B V Raghavulu, state secretary and member of the Polit Bureau of the CPI(M), in a series of letters brought to the notice of the chief minister Dr Y S Rajasekhara Reddy the serious problems that had arisen as a result of several irregularities committed by the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (HUDA) in the process of acquiring lands, in changing the alignment of ORR and in selling away such lands through auctions. Raghavulu visited some of the villages around Hyderabad and enquired about the plight of the farmers and others who had lost their land in the process of acquisition by the government. Finding fault with the HUDA for spending public money to clarify its stand through advertisements on the criticism against its irregularities that had appeared in a section of the media, Raghavulu demanded the release of a white paper explaining factual position if the HUDA or the government sincerely wanted to make public all facts relating to these developments. 

Thirty four dalit families and three families of backward classes at Kokapet village in Ranga Reddy district have been cultivating 67 acres of land for generations. Ignoring their repeated requests for issuing pattas on those lands, the government forcibly took possession of those lands and sold them away in open auction and put the hefty proceeds of Rs 703.9 crore in the exchequer. Similarly, the government has been taking possession of lands assigned to dalits and other poor people in several other villages, without paying them any compensation. Rebutting the facile argument of the HUDA that it has been auctioning the government lands, Raghavulu had pointed out that the government lands should be made use of for the benefit of the common and middle class people, for setting up industries and for other public purposes. Selling away such lands just to fill the coffers of the government is objectionable, as the prices of lands have been skyrocketing as a result of auctions and acquiring a piece of house site is becoming impossible for the common people in and around Hyderabad. Raghavulu demanded the government to stop auctioning of lands forthwith.

There are serious allegations, with a sufficient degree of approximation to reality, that the HUDA has been acting in a systematic way to enhance the prices of lands of real estate dealers and other influential people. The modus operandi is that it would issue a notification for acquiring lands of the people of a particular area, as a result of which, the farmers to be affected by such acquisition are forced, out of fear, to sell away their lands. After influential people purchase those lands, the HUDA coolly withdraws the notification issued for acquisition of those lands. Several examples of such modus operandi of the HUDA have come out in the media. Referring to the allegations that the alignment of the outer ring road has been changed several times with a view to avoid acquisition of lands of the influential people of the ruling party and their relatives, Raghavulu pointed out that, for example, such manipulations had taken place at Mankhal hamlet and Bongulur village in Maheswaram Mandal and at Kishanguda junction in Shamshabad Mandal. Raghavulu requested the chief minister to order a time-bound high-level inquiry by a sitting judge to examine the allegations and irregularities, to determine the propriety or otherwise of the entire process and suggest necessary steps to be taken to punish the guilty and do justice to the affected people. 

NO LAND POLICY

Both the HUDA and Andhra Pradesh Infrastructure Development Corporation have been acquiring lands of farmers, paying them very cheap prices, under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, all in the name of development. Raghavulu demanded the government to pay replacement value, instead of market price, for the lands of farmers when they are acquired for the purposes of development and also ensure appropriate share to them in the profits of the projects to which their lands are allotted. For this purpose, Raghavulu demanded the chief minister to convene an all-party meeting with political parties and experts in the field to formulate a proper land policy. Serious land disputes are arising in and around Hyderabad, as a result of lack of revenue records with a clear-cut right of ownership of lands. Such a situation is favourable to the nefarious activities of land mafias. Raghavulu requested the chief minister to take up a modern survey of lands in Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy districts immediately, complete the same on a war-footing and update the records within one year. The land mafia has been grabbing lands – government lands, inam lands, lands of people migrated from other countries, assigned lands, temple lands, wakf lands, etc – and attacking the people who objected to the same. They have the support of corrupt officers, including some police people and influential middlemen. The land mafia has been forcing the poor and middle class employees to vacate the house sites purchased with their hard-earned money by creating papers of power of attorney and getting orders from courts in their favour. Raghavulu demanded the chief minister to take necessary steps for curbing the land mafia. 

In the name of development, the government has been allotting lands to several organisations. There are serious allegations that such lands are being used for real estate business and diverted for purposes other than the ones for which the allotments were made. For example, 36 acres of land allotted by the government in Uppal municipal area for setting up a pharmaceutical industry is being sold away by Pfizer company. Raghavulu requested the government to make public a list of all such allottees and the purposes for which they have been using the lands allotted to them. He lashed out at the government for its double standards in keeping quiet when the rich are misusing the land allotted to them for specific purposes and in dispossessing the dalits and other poor people from the lands they have been cultivating over the years. The farmers, who have been cultivating temple lands and assigned lands for a long time, are being dispossessed from their lands, even without paying any compensation, thereby discriminating against dalits and depriving them of their livelihood. 

For example, 800 acres of temple lands at Jannayiguda village in Maheswaram Mandal is being acquired from 60 families of farmers for the sake of Fab City and 250 acres of assigned lands at Adibatla village in Ibrahimpatnam is being acquired from the poor for the sake of hardware park. Even where the government is offering compensation, it is a pittance compared to the actual market price. Like, at Adibatla village, the government is offering Rs 1.5 lakh per acre, while an acre of land was sold for Rs 36 lakh recently. Similarly, at M M Kunta village in Hayathnagar mandal, while the government is offering a compensation of Rs 4 lakh per acre, the open market price is about Rs 60 lakh. At Uppal, the government is offering Rs 30 lakh against the market price of Rs 3 crore per acre. For acquiring lands where houses were already constructed by the common people, irrespective of the extent of the area, the government is offering to give 250 sqare yards only and a small amount towards expenses for construction of house which would not be sufficient even to construct a boundary wall. For vacant plots, it is not even offering alternate sites.

For getting clearance on any project, it is necessary to get a report on the socio-economic and environmental impact such a project would have. Raghavulu pointed out that it did not seem that there were any such reports for any of the projects being taken up around Hyderabad and that it would be illegal to take up construction works without getting clearance based on such reports. 

The ruling Congress government tried to sidetrack the issue by raising acquisition of land for industries by the CPI(M)-led Left Front government in West Bengal. The CPI(M) had made it clear that the LF government was paying adequate compensation for acquisition of land depending on the market prices prevailing there.

Demanding justice to the people who lost their lands under ORR, a call was given by the Metro Displaced People’s Organisation to lay seige on national highways at Hayathnagar, Shamshabad and Patancheru junctions on October 12. Several leaders of the CPI(M), CPI and other opposition parties and thousands of people participated in the agitation. On all the three highways, vehicular traffic came to a standstill for a long distance. The leaders demanded compensation of land for land and house for house to the people affected under the ORR. They warned the government of intensifying the agitation if it did not respond positively to do justice to the people affected under ORR. 

Addressing the people at Hayathnagar, B V Raghavulu said though the opposition parties gave representations to the government several times on the issue there was no response. Raghavulu brushed aside the offer of the government for CBI inquiry and called it useless. In the name of special economic zones and other projects, the government has been acquiring thousands of acres of lands of farmers at several areas in the state. Raghavulu warned the government that if it did not respond favourably to the demands of the people affected under ORR, works for its construction would be stopped and a statewide agitation would be launched. Leaders of CPI and other opposition parties also addressed the people agitating at three places. The police arrested leaders and other people and released them later.