HYDERABAD: A forensic audit has revealed approximately 22,000 anomalies during the examination of eight lakh Dharani (land) transactions from October 2020 to December 2024. Despite this finding, the state government remains uncertain about the officials and individuals involved in these transactions, which concern nearly 10,000 acres of land.
The audit, conducted by the Kerala Security Audit and Assurance Centre (KSAAC), identified several suspicious transactions but lacked definitive evidence against those responsible due to alleged tampering of records, deletion of relevant online databases, and, in some instances, intervention at the Chief Commissioner of Land Administration (CCLA) office level.
The irregularities were primarily noted in the districts of Rangareddy, Medchal-Malkajgiri, Rajanna-Sircilla, Siddipet, Warangal, and Vikarabad. Many of the problematic land parcels were originally assigned to the landless poor, with restrictions on their sale, yet were transferred to names unrelated to the original assignees.
Last year, the state government initiated a forensic investigation into the Dharani land transactions conducted between October 2020 and December 2024, primarily under the previous BRS regime.
“The initial audit by the Kerala agency was limited to Siddipet and Sircilla but has since expanded to Rangareddy and Medchal. It will now cover the entire state,” a senior revenue department officer informed TOI.
The government has recently set up a committee comprising district collectors and officials from various departments, including IT, registration, CCLA, NIC, and cybercrime experts.
In its memo, the government indicated, “It was observed that the Dharani portal’s system architecture had inherent vulnerabilities that were exploited by unscrupulous elements to implement unauthorized entries. The underlying architecture of the Bhu Bharati portal, adapted from that of Dharani, was also found susceptible to similar exploits.”
As a result, the government has directed NIC to develop a new, secure system architecture to uphold the system’s integrity and security and mandated the committee to submit its findings within 15 days.
Sources suggest that once individuals responsible for the anomalies are identified, the government may form a special investigation team or refer the case to the CID for criminal proceedings.
