22-A land mess: review, don’t stonewall

Section 22-A was meant to protect state and public land. In Telangana it’s also blocking ordinary registrations — a fact now on the record, not just on a placard. On 1 July 2026, the High Court set aside a refusal after finding the wrong clause was slapped on, and told the authority to hear the petitioner and reconsider. The government’s own counter pointed people to the Bhu Bharati portal for deletion from the prohibited list.

The Congress government says it has told offices not to bin applications just because a survey number sits on 22-A. According to a published report this month, Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy asked officials to scrutinise cases, comply with court directions and clear disputes within 45 days — and claimed his government hadn’t added “even a cent” since taking office. The portal itself lists a grievance flow for “Inclusion in Prohibited Properties List,” which is where the promises meet the forms.

The Opposition BRS, for its part, met affected owners and says it has set up a Telangana Bhavan legal cell to help them, while alleging questionable inclusions and yo-yo deletions. Those specifics still need documents — written orders, notifications, survey-wise histories — not just the mic.

What is settled: 22-A has categories, and clause (e) needs a government notification in the public domain. What isn’t: how many wrongful listings exist, how many have been fixed, and how fast a genuine owner can get off the list using the official route the state itself cites. The BJP has nothing to say because it has nothing at stake here except a talking point; the work sits with Hyderabad. The Congress government in Telangana asked for 45 days — landowners will count them; excuses won’t register.