Telangana farmers, buyers await Rs 120 cr refunds; Dharani delays drag on for 3 years; legal action likely
HYDERABAD: Even as the Telangana govt claims to have addressed several glitches in the Dharani land registration portal, a major problem remains unresolved: Refunds for cancelled slot bookings.
Thousands of farmers and property buyers are still waiting for their money-an estimated 120 crore-to be returned for transactions that never went through. This is confirmed by official sources themselves.
Take the case of Jakkula Sugunavathi from Medchal district. She booked a slot on Dharani in May 2022 to purchase four acres of land and paid 8.4 lakh towards stamp duty and registration charges. However, she had to cancel the transaction a month later, in June 2022, due to unforeseen reasons.
Despite multiple follow-ups over three years, Sugunavathi did not receive a refund. Left with no option, she finally approached the high court, which recently directed the govt to refund the 8.4 lakh within a month.
"As per the rules, if the slot is cancelled within six months, the district collector is responsible for processing the refund. After six months, it is the duty of the inspector general and commissioner of the registration department," Gummi Rajkumar Reddy, a lawyer and social activist, told TOI.
Rajkumar Reddy, who sought information from the chief commissioner of land administration through an RTI application, said, "Since the launch of the Dharani portal in 2020, refunds were issued in only two cases, and both came after court intervention."
The Congress govt, after coming to power, replaced the previous BRS regime's Dharani portal with a new land administration system called Bhu Bharati. The move was aimed at addressing long-standing complaints about Dharani, including lack of transparency, technical glitches, and difficulties faced by farmers during land transactions, official sources said.
Insiders said the state's ongoing financial crunch is a major reason why refunds have been delayed, and there's no timeline for when they will be cleared. With registration costs running into lakhs in Hyderabad and even significant amounts in rural areas, affected citizens say the delay is causing serious financial strain.
"The govt fixed technical issues in the Dharani portal, but what about the money it owes the people," asked an aggrieved farmer. Despite repeated requests, many of them have been waiting to get back their registration fees and stamp duties.
There is growing frustration that burden is being unfairly shifted to individuals who followed due process. Many are considering legal action as their only option to recover their rightful dues.
Thousands of farmers and property buyers are still waiting for their money-an estimated 120 crore-to be returned for transactions that never went through. This is confirmed by official sources themselves.
Take the case of Jakkula Sugunavathi from Medchal district. She booked a slot on Dharani in May 2022 to purchase four acres of land and paid 8.4 lakh towards stamp duty and registration charges. However, she had to cancel the transaction a month later, in June 2022, due to unforeseen reasons.
Despite multiple follow-ups over three years, Sugunavathi did not receive a refund. Left with no option, she finally approached the high court, which recently directed the govt to refund the 8.4 lakh within a month.
"As per the rules, if the slot is cancelled within six months, the district collector is responsible for processing the refund. After six months, it is the duty of the inspector general and commissioner of the registration department," Gummi Rajkumar Reddy, a lawyer and social activist, told TOI.
Rajkumar Reddy, who sought information from the chief commissioner of land administration through an RTI application, said, "Since the launch of the Dharani portal in 2020, refunds were issued in only two cases, and both came after court intervention."
The Congress govt, after coming to power, replaced the previous BRS regime's Dharani portal with a new land administration system called Bhu Bharati. The move was aimed at addressing long-standing complaints about Dharani, including lack of transparency, technical glitches, and difficulties faced by farmers during land transactions, official sources said.
Insiders said the state's ongoing financial crunch is a major reason why refunds have been delayed, and there's no timeline for when they will be cleared. With registration costs running into lakhs in Hyderabad and even significant amounts in rural areas, affected citizens say the delay is causing serious financial strain.
"The govt fixed technical issues in the Dharani portal, but what about the money it owes the people," asked an aggrieved farmer. Despite repeated requests, many of them have been waiting to get back their registration fees and stamp duties.
There is growing frustration that burden is being unfairly shifted to individuals who followed due process. Many are considering legal action as their only option to recover their rightful dues.
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