Property owners caught in catch-22 over Sec 22-A list

Warangal: Many landowners in the erstwhile Warangal district are facing difficulties in selling or registering otherwise their properties since the survey numbers of the land in question figure in the 22-A prohibited list. Although many of them claim to have pattas, possession, and records showing ownership; registration officials are reportedly refusing transactions because the lands are included in the prohibited category.

According to official statistics, around 76,000 acres in the present Hanumakonda and Jangaon districts are believed to be figuring in the Section 22-A list. Of this, nearly 40,000 acres are in Hanumakonda district and about 36,000 acres in Jangaon district.

However, the complete details behind these figures are not available to the public. There is a felt need for clarity on the extent of land covered in each mandal and village, the survey numbers involved, the area of each parcel, and the category under which the land was included in the prohibited list.

Officials are yet to release clear district-wise details on the extent of government, assigned, endowment, Wakf and other prohibited lands as well as private patta lands included in the 22-A list.

Landowners complain that some properties purchased and registered several years ago, for which taxes had been paid and in which possession continued, have also found a place in the list. The reasons for including such lands in the prohibited category need to be examined.

The plethora of applications being received by registration officials reflect the seriousness of the issue. At least 48 applications related to Section 22-A listing were reportedly submitted at various sub-registrar offices across the erstwhile district in just 15 days.

Applications are said to have come from Hanumakonda, Warangal, Station Ghanpur, Vardhannapet, Jangaon, Mahabubabad, Mulugu, Narsampet, Parkal, Bhupalapally, and Bhimadevarapalle, among other areas.

Publication of the details of these applications and the action taken on them could provide a clearer picture of the extent of the problem.

Getting a survey number removed from the 22-A list after its wrongful inclusion has become a major challenge for landowners. The issue requires coordination between the revenue and registration departments and verification of relevant records.

Many landowners reportedly lack clear information about the application process, scrutiny, time taken for a decision, reasons for rejection, and the process for an appeal in case of rejection. As removal proceedings are invariably delayed, owners are unable to sell their properties or use them to meet financial needs.

Questions are being raised over whether old revenue records, assigned land registers, government land details, court orders, and previous registration transactions were comprehensively examined while preparing the prohibited list.

If private patta lands entered the list due to errors or gaps in records, there is a need for a faster mechanism to identify and rectify such mistakes. Disputes relating to 22-A lands are moving beyond revenue and registration offices and reaching the courts. In one case concerning a survey number in Narsampet, records relating to nine acres and 13 guntas have reportedly come before the court. Of this, four acres and 20 guntas are said to be involved in a dispute over inclusion in the 22-A prohibited list.

As similar cases emerge, demands are growing for greater transparency in the process of adding or removing lands from the list.

Landowners and public representatives say that announcing only the total district-wise extent is not enough. The government should make the following details available digitally for every parcel:

Mandal and village.

Survey number and extent.

Land category.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

KOTHA RAMESH

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