Telangana allots Rs 300 crore Budvel land at Rs 1 per acre; HC sends notice

Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court issued notices to the state government and to Raja Bahadur Venkata Rama Reddy Educational Society in Hyderabad on the allotment of five acres of prime government land to the latter at a mere Rs 1 per acre. The cost of the land is said to be Rs 300 crores in the open market.

The Telangana State Government through GO 197 Revenue Assn II Department, on September 5, 2018, allotted five acres of prime land at Budvel village in Rajendranagar Mandal, RR district at a cost of Rs 1 per acre. The land was allotted to Raja Bahadur Venkata Rama Reddy Educational Society for the purpose of establishing a hostel, residential school and an old age home.

The Division Bench was hearing a plea filed by social worker K Koteswara Rao and others who were upset with the Telangana government’s decision. The petitioners sought suspension of the GO issued for allotting the land to the educational society on the grounds that the state cannot dole out such precious lands as per its whims and fancies.

Chikkudu Prabhakar, counsel for the petitioner, informed the court that the five acres of land allotted to the educational society is plain land and as of now, there is no construction on the said land.

A Division Bench, comprising Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Justice T Vinod Kumar on Monday, issued notices to the chief secretary, special chief secretary, revenue department, chief commissioner of Land Administration, district collector, Rangareddy District and Raja Bahadur Venkata Rama Reddy Educational Society, Hyderabad directing them to respond to the notices within four weeks by filing their counter-affidavits.