Hyderabad: Vigilance authorities have started grilling some senior officials in connection with the recent leak of HILT (Hyderabad Industrial Land Transfer) policy even before an official announcement could be made by the state government.

Top sources said that vigilance teams were questioning certain officials in the CMO as well as IT and Industry wings to zero in on the persons who had leaked the policy details to Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leaders in advance.

The opposition party has since launched a fight against the alleged move to allot lands to various parties in the industrial zones at throwaway prices, embarrassing the government.

Officials said that Chief Secretary K Ramakrishna Rao ordered a vigilance probe into the entire episode. The investigating officers were busy questioning officials suspected to have passed the details of the policy to the opposition party.

The probe agency is of the view that content meant for the policy document was leaked during the preparation of the draft. The movement of the file from the section officer in the Industries Department to the CMO office is under investigation to unravel the facts in the entire episode.

Officials said that the Cabinet Sub-Committee on mobilisation of resources, consisting of Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka and Ministers N Uttam Kumar Reddy, D Sridha Babu, and Jupally Krishna Rao, also held a series of meetings with the industry, Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation Limited (TSIIC) and Stamps & Registration Departments to finalise the policy and the rate of the lands. All the officials who attended the meetings held by the Cabinet Sub-Committee would also be questioned.

The role of the Cabinet Sub-Committee was crucial in the finalisation of the policy. Many officials of various departments were seen attending the meetings. “It will be difficult to arrive at a conclusion on the role of any official unless there is strong evidence against the suspect,” top officials said, adding that the probe will continue, and the CS would be updated regularly.