After HYDRAA, Section 22A triggers fresh concerns among Telangana property owners

Property owners across Hyderabad and neighbouring districts are facing difficulties after lands and properties were brought under Section 22A of the Registration Act. Builders and developers have raised concerns over stalled transactions, lack of prior notice and the impact on Telangana's real estate sector.

Hyderabad: After the controversy over HYDRAA‘s selective demolitions, the inclusion of lands and properties under Section 22A of the Registration Act is causing anxiety among property owners, who are unable to sell their plots or flats to meet urgent financial needs. Section 22A bars the sale, transfer or mortgage of specified lands and properties.

Despite possessing valid GHMC or HMDA building permissions, occupancy certificates, property tax receipts and other documents, several apartment complexes in Hyderabad, as well as independent houses and open plots in Rangareddy, Medchal-Malkajgiri, Vikarabad and other districts, have reportedly been classified as prohibited category properties.

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The biggest concern is that many owners are unaware that their properties have been brought under Section 22A. They discover the restriction only when they approach Sub-Registrar Offices to sell or transfer their plots or flats. Over the past few days, residents of Dilsukhnagar, Manikonda, Miyapur and several other localities have reportedly raised complaints over the issue.

In one such case, a developer obtained HMDA approval in 2022 for a residential layout spread over more than four acres in Survey No. 1247 at Shameerpet in Medchal district. However, the land was later included under Section 22A, bringing all transactions to a halt. The developer approached the District Collector, seeking denotification of the land.

The controversy surfaced after the Registration and Stamps Department, in October last year, sought details of lands and properties included in the prohibited category in a prescribed format.

District Collectors were directed to furnish the details, following which the Revenue Department submitted information that included the mandal, village or town, survey number, subdivision details, plot number, town survey number, house number, extent of land, and whether it belonged to the State or Central government.

However, in several cases, the Revenue Department reportedly shared only survey numbers without specifying plot numbers, town survey numbers or house numbers.

For example, Rangareddy district listed a survey number in Nadergul village of Balapur mandal, mentioning only the extent of land and that it fell under the jurisdiction of the Airports Authority of India. Similar entries referred to lands belonging to TGIIC, RTC, graveyards, temples, schools, hostels and government poramboke lands without identifying specific plots.

“We submitted the information exactly as sought by the Registration and Stamps Department. If there are disputes or claims, landowners can approach the respective District Collectors to obtain No Objection Certificates or seek denotification of their lands from the prohibited list,” a senior Revenue Department official said.

Officials at Sub-Registrar Offices, however, maintained that registrations were being carried out strictly based on the list provided by the Revenue Department.

Caught between the two departments, property owners are bearing the consequences. In some cases, because one subdivision in a survey number was classified as agricultural land, the entire survey number was brought under the prohibited category, preventing the sale and transfer of all plots within it.

Led by former MLA M Anand, developers recently submitted a representation to Vikarabad District Collector Deepak Tiwari, seeking relief from such restrictions.

The exercise has also raised concerns among builders and developers over its potential impact on the real estate sector.

“The government is taking decisions without assessing their consequences. Such actions will affect investor confidence, particularly among NRIs, who may think twice before investing in Telangana,” a member of CREDAI Hyderabad said.

The member also questioned how lands and flats could be included under Section 22A without informing property owners or issuing notices, warning that the process could lead to corruption and irregularities.