T-Congress Flays KCR's Land Regularisation Move

Deputy CLP leader in the Telangana Legislative Council Mohammed Ali Shabbir accused Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao of indirectly encouraging land grabbers in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad.

Addressing a press conference in the Assembly premises on Wednesday, Shabbir Ali said that the State Government had issued two GOs late on Tuesday night to regularise the encroachments on government lands.

He welcomed the GO Ms No 58, which is meant for regularisation free of cost for poor people who are in possession of government lands up to 125 sq yards. However, he slammed the government for issuing GO Ms No 59, which directs regularisation of encroachments on lands above 125 sq yards.

He said that such encroachments had been classified into three categories - 125-250 sq yards, 250-500 sq yards and more than 500 sq yards. And it was quite clear that such encroachments were not done by the poor and common people, he stated.

Shabbir Ali thus alleged that the Chief Minister was indirectly supporting the land grabbers and encouraging encroachments.

Accusing the government of setting a wrong precedent, he said that land grabbers would henceforth not leave a single yard of government land in the city with the confidence that the government would regularise it in future.

Referring to the demolitions done at Ayyappa Society citing those constructions as illegal, he sought to know as to what led the Chief Minister to change his mind since on illegal encroachments and constructions.

Although this move could generate good revenues in the present, there would be no land left in the city in the future even for the government to take up any project, he feared.

He demanded that the government withdraw the GO Ms No 59, and first compile the data related to all encroachments in the city, as demanded by the Congress party during the all-Party meetings held on December 9th and 16th.

Speaking about the recruitments to be done by Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC), the Congress leader said that the Commission Chairman Ganta Chakrapani first spoke about issuing notifications soon to fill up over one lakh posts. However, he later issued a statement indicating that recruitments would be done only after changing the syllabus and examination patterns. Shabbir Ali said that this statement was an indirect indication that no recruitment would be done in the near future.

While welcoming the decision to include Telangana's history in the syllabus, Shabbir Ali said that changing the syllabus and examination pattern would consume time, and therefore they should not be linked to the first phase of recruitments for about one lakh posts.

The Congress leader said that the students had played a major role in the formation of Telangana. They did not allow job notifications since 2009 and preferred Telangana State over their careers. Since the Telangana State had been formed due to their sacrifices, the State Government should respect and recognise their contribution and give them an opportunity to join the government services by initiating the recruitment process without any strings attached.

He said that hundreds of students faced the risk of being age barred as no recruitment took place in the State for the last three years. Therefore, as a special consideration, the State Government should give relaxations and preference to the students who participated in the Telangana movement while making recruitments, he demanded.

When asked for a response on the rumours of former minister D Nagender joining the TRS, Shabbir Ali denied the reports and said that Nagender would stay with the Congress. Nagender was currently on vacation along with his family, and he himself would clarify all such rumours once he returned, Shabbir Ali stated. The rumours were all baseless and mere speculations, he averred. (INN)