Congress govt defends 22A listings amid complaints from private owners

The Telangana government has defended its handling of the 22A prohibited list, assuring that genuine landowners will not lose their rights. Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy directed officials to review disputed cases, comply with court orders and resolve grievances within prescribed timelines

Hyderabad: Facing growing complaints from citizens that legally held and authorised properties were being placed in the 22A prohibited list, the Congress government has sought to defend its record, insisting that no genuine landowner or poor person would be denied their rights.

The government’s defensive stance comes amid complaints and media reports, including news articles published by the Telangana Today newspaper, over 22A listings.

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A high-level review meeting was chaired by Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy on Wednesday, involving officials from Hyderabad, Rangareddy and Sangareddy districts and other departments.

Srinivas Reddy said the government had not deliberately added even a cent of land to the prohibited list since assuming office and dismissed reports that undisputed private properties were being included to trouble people as completely untrue. He directed officials to scrutinise every case based on records, facts and legal provisions and remove eligible lands from the prohibited list wherever warranted. Applications and grievances, including those received through Prajavani, must be disposed of within the prescribed timelines.

He also directed officials to comply with High Court directions and complete proceedings in 22A disputes within 45 days. While stressing that government land must be protected from illegal transactions, registrations and encroachments, he said district collectors have the authority to take final decisions on 22A lands.

However, the minister’s repeated assurances that genuine private land had not been wrongly listed indicated the scale of public concern over the issue.

The government’s emphasis on case-by-case scrutiny and time-bound disposal also suggests that the administration is now under pressure to address complaints without allowing the protection of government land to become a reason for denying legitimate private property rights.