Hyderabad: Expressing deep concern over what he described as “one of the biggest land scams in independent India,” KT Rama Rao on Sunday questioned whether Rahul Gandhi’s silence on the recently introduced Hyderabad Industrial Land Transformation Policy (HILTP) by Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy amounted to approval and shared guilt.
The BRS Working President on Sunday wrote an open letter to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Rama Rao warned that the policy could cause a loss of Rs 5 lakh crore to the people of Telangana by enabling private entities to acquire highly valuable public lands at a fraction of their actual market value.
KTR explained that previous governments had allotted nearly 9,300 acres of industrial land in Hyderabad in key clusters such as Balanagar, Jeedimetla, Sanathnagar, Uppal, Mallapur, Ramachandrapuram and Hayathnagar.
These lands were originally provided at concessional rates to promote industrial growth, employment generation, and long-term economic development. He alleged that under the new HILTP, industrial landholders can now convert these lands into commercial or residential zones by paying only 30 per cent of the SRO value—despite current market prices being several times higher.
According to him, this policy effectively converts public assets into massive private windfall gains, with land valued at lakhs of crores being regularised for a minimal cost.
KTR also raised doubts over the government’s decision to offer fast-track approvals within 45 days for conversions involving assets worth thousands of crores.
The BRS leader criticised the policy’s stated objective of relocating polluting industries outside the Outer Ring Road (ORR), calling it misleading and poorly designed.
He listed several shortcomings of the policy, including the fact that relocation is purely voluntary, approvals are done on a case-by-case basis, and no mandatory conditions or timelines are imposed on industries to shift.
The policy appears tailored to benefit ‘a handful of Congress leaders, influential real-estate groups, and individuals closely associated with the Chief Minister’, allowing them to acquire prime land for a fraction of its real value.
KTR asked whether the Congress leader was unaware of the alleged large-scale misappropriation and whether he would now intervene to protect Telangana’s interests.
Furthermore, he questioned whether Rahul Gandhi’s silence on the matter indicated tacit approval, thereby making him equally accountable. Telangana has always been a land of self-respect and justice, and that the state cannot allow its future to be mortgaged by a nexus of political and commercial interests, he said asserting the Congress party’s response to his letter would determine whether it stands with the people of Telangana or with those accused of looting its public assets.
