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Journalism of Courage
The Bharat Rashtra Samithi’s (BRS) core messaging in this election season has centred around its many welfare schemes and digitisation efforts. Among the initiatives that the BRS leaders have been highlighting is the Dharani portal, a land records management website launched in 2020 that was billed as one of the biggest e-governance initiatives of the state government.
All sales and purchases of land in the state are currently done through the website. It also allows people to check ownership records of properties, including land registration, transfer, and sale rights. However, there have been complaints that the website has been bogged down by glitches, with hundreds of people claiming that it shows their land as being owned by someone else and pointing out issues in the categorisation of their land.
The Congress too has been hitting out at the government over the website, with the party saying it will shut down Dharani if it comes to power. Congress leader Mohammed Ali Shabbir has alleged that there have been complaints about 30 lakh acres of land since the website was launched and that land was being sold to private companies in open auctions.
At a rally in Kollapur on Monday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said, “When there was our ‘Prajala (people’s)’ government, we returned the land belonging to Dalits, tribals, the backwards. and the poor. The land we returned was taken away by your Chief Minister (K Chandrashekar Rao, or KCR). With the excuse of computerisation, the Dharani portal was stolen. Twenty lakh farmers suffered losses in Telangana and who benefitted? One family, their MLAs and ministers.”
KCR has said the old system will adversely affect farmers. At a public meeting at Jangaon on October 16, KCR said, “Teach a lesson to the Congress and throw them in the Bay of Bengal. If they come to power, you will end up doing protests for your rights. I brought the Dharani portal after a survey was undertaken for three to four years. Many people were claiming rights on lands and we cleaned it up. I gave rights to farmers and their lands are safe. That will not be the case if the Congress comes to power.”
In April, following a series of complaints on the website, the Telangana High Court directed the Revenue Department to take up the issue with the Chief Secretary and the Chief Commissioner of Land Administration of Telangana.
