Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy assured Dalit and tribal families that the Telangana government would not take “even an inch” of their land and urged them not to believe what he described as misinformation aimed at creating fear among them.

In a statement, Mr. Srinivas Reddy said protecting the land rights of Dalits and tribals was the policy of the Congress government and that there was no need for beneficiaries to apprehend that land surveys or scrutiny of records would lead to their lands being taken away.

He said the Congress had a history of implementing land reforms and distributing land to landless Dalits and other marginalised communities. In the Telangana region, Congress governments had distributed about 25 lakh acres to Dalits during the Indira Gandhi government and conferred rights over nearly two lakh acres of podu land to tribals, he reminded.

The Minister said processes such as verification of land records, surveys and re-surveys were intended to establish ownership rights, resolve disputes and protect land rights, and should not be viewed as measures to take away people’s lands.

He said the government had resolved longstanding land issues in 15 revenue villages in Nuthankal and Maddirala mandals in Suryapet district and at Narayanapur in Kesamudram mandal of Mahabubabad district.

Mr. Srinivas Reddy alleged that some people were deliberately spreading misinformation and attempting to provoke Dalits for political gains.

Reiterating his assurance on behalf of Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, the Minister said there was no need to fear or panic based on misinformation campaign