In a press conference, Union Minister for Coal and Mines G Kishan Reddy accused the Telangana government of illegally dividing the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation into three corporations. The division, according to Reddy, was undertaken after the Centre issued a notification for the Census, in violation of guidelines set by the Census Directorate.
Reddy asserted that a nationwide directive had been circulated stating that revenue villages and wards should not be divided after the issuance of the Census notification. However, the state government proceeded with the division, a decision Reddy described as completely illegal.
The BJP leader also criticized the Telangana government for transferring several IAS officers and officials of various departments in violation of Election Commission norms, particularly at a time when municipal elections were being held in the state. He alleged that the division of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) into three corporations was also in violation of Election Commission rules.
Reddy further claimed that areas located far from the municipal headquarters were included in the new corporations, which he argued would cause injustice to poor residents of those villages. He asserted that the state government had included several villages in the new corporations without any comprehensive plan or mobilization of financial resources.
The Union Minister pointed out that the area covered by the GHMC formed in 2007 was 650 square kilometres, but under the new arrangement, the three corporations together cover 2,053 square kilometres. However, he claimed that there is no infrastructure development plan commensurate with this expansion.
Kishan Reddy also alleged that the decision to divide the municipal corporations would negatively impact the employment guarantee scheme currently benefiting poor residents in rural areas.
