Hyderabad: BRS working president KT Rama Rao on Friday accused the state govt of orchestrating a financial scam of Rs 10,000 crore pledging 400 acres of Kancha Gachibowli land.
KTR alleged though the land was not officially transferred to Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TGIIC), the corporation had mortaged it with ICICI Bank, which, without verifying the land records, had granted Rs 10,000 crore loan.
Speaking at a press conference at Telangana Bhavan, KTR described the whole transaction as a “criminal conspiracy” involving chief minister A Revanth Reddy. He said the govt not only looted public money but also caused irreversible environmental devastation, betraying the trust of people.
“When the land was not alienated to TGIIC, how can it borrow Rs 10,000 crore? How did the bank allow it. After Supreme Court verdict on the land last year in favour of the govt, the state had transferred it to TGIIC by issuing a GO, not legally alienated or mutated to TGIIC. That means the corporation is not the owner of the land legally,” he alleged.
However, an ICICI Bank spokesperson denied that the bank had provided a mortgage loan to TGIIC.
“We would like to clarify that we have not provided any mortgage loan to TGIIC and TGIIC has not mortgaged any land with us in relation to this bond issuance. We acted only as an account bank to TGIIC for receipt of bond issuance money and interest servicing,” the bank’s spokesperson said.
KTR demanded a probe by Reserve Bank of India, Central Vigilance Commission and Serious Fraud Investigation Office. He said he would be writing letters to the agencies on the entire episode. He also demanded that Rs 10,000 crore loan be revoked and Revanth as well as TGIIC officials be held accountable.
He also claimed there was a larger HMDA land scam worth Rs 60,000 crore and vowed to raise the issue in Parliament and courts, if needed.
Alleging that there was a criminal conspiracy, KTR questioned why value of Kancha Gachibowli land was revised thrice – Rs 75 crore, Rs 52 crore and Rs 41 crore per acre in one year.
“The govt inflated the value of 400 acres to Rs 30,000 crore in a June 2024 in the GO and reduced it to Rs 16,400 crore by Nov 2024, raising suspicion of a plan to transfer it to Revanth Reddy’s associates at a lower price. According to the stamps and registration department, the land’s actual market value is Rs 5,239.84 crore, exposing the gross overvaluation,” he said.
KTR alleged the bank relied on Trust Investment Advisor Pvt. Ltd., a brokerage firm which was paid Rs 169 crore by the state through Beacon Trusteeship. He claimed the land was classified as forest land under a 1996 SC ruling, but was illegally pledged without verifying ownership or obtaining environmental clearances.
He also alleged that a BJP MP facilitated the scam by introducing the brokerage company, enabling bank’s loan approval.
“This MP’s name will be revealed soon. The central govt’s inaction will confirm a BJP-Congress nexus,” he said.
KTR also accused the state govt of misusing the loan, meant for welfare schemes, to pay commissions to Congress loyalists.
“They claimed Rs. 5,000 crore went to farmers, but where is the rest?” he sought to know.