HYDERABAD: Former Union Minister and senior BJP leader Bandaru Dattatreya has charged the Congress Government with supporting big-time realtors and trying to divert attention of people over the land acquisition controversy for the outer ring road.

In a statement on Wednesday, Mr. Dattatreya lambasted Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy and his Cabinet colleague Sabitha Indra Reddy for their stand on the issue and supported the demand of the affected farmers seeking land for compensation.

The BJP leader also justified the farmers' other demand of seeking the same price for which the Government was auctioning and did not agree that the compensatory price being given will help them buy land elsewhere.

He challenged Ms. Sabitha Reddy for a public debate over the ownership of lands by the Dalits at Kokapet and accused her of changing the tune after becoming a Minister.

Contrary to her assertions, many small and marginal farmers belonging to weaker sections were losing their land, especially at the Thondipally, Kishanguda and Vootpalli villages, he added.

Judicial enquiry

The CPI (M) State secretary B.V. Raghavulu on Tuesday sought a judicial enquiry in land acquisitions taken up in recent times and also an all-party meet to discuss the issue.

In a letter written to the Chief Minister, Mr. Raghavulu said he had travelled across some villages and suspected a racket going on in the acquisition.

The rich and influential appear to have to managed in getting decisions changed to ensure they were not affected while the poor and middle class were made the scapegoats, he said.

The Government was offering meagre prices to those losing land while the property prices were quite high in the market, he said adding that many retired and employed people had put their money in plots on the city outskirts which they stand to lose now without appropriate compensation.

The outer ring road was designed to avoid lands of the influential and made to pass through those owned by poor farmers, he alleged.

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