The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : ‘No mention of temple in documents’

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Friday, Jul 06, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

‘No mention of temple in documents’

B. Chandrashekhar

Tirade smells of mala fide intentions, says G. Janardhana Reddy

OBULAPURAM (ANANTAPUR DT.): In spite of the raging controversy over the legality of his mining activity, G. Janardhana Reddy, one of the directors of Obulapuram Mining Company and promoters of the proposed Brahmani Steel Company in Kadapa district, is composure personified.

During an interaction on Wednesday, hours after members of the TDP’s fact-finding committee were arrested by the police near Rayadurg, he told The Hindu that “the tirade launched against me smells of mala fide intention s and aimed at politically targeting the State Government, which was cooperating for the steel project.”

Renewal of lease

He simply brushed aside the salvos being fired at him by the TDP stating that they were nothing beyond mudslinging as “there is no truth in the charges.”

On the allegation that the mining lease was taken back illegally from T. Thimmappa, Mr. Janardhana Reddy said the lease given to Thimmappa in 1957 had expired in 1977 after which he had not applied for renewal.

As per the mining guidelines, a lease could be continued by applying for renewal one year before the expiry of the existing lease period. But Thimmappa had not applied for renewal even after the expiry of his lease period.

“We had taken over the first lease 2002 from G. Ramamohan Reddy, to whom it was given in 1964, and had applied for a new lease in August 2004 and it was sanctioned in December that year,” he mentioned.

Right from the lease given to Mr Ramamohan Reddy nowhere in the lease documents, topo-sheet of the area or in the records of forest and mines departments, there was any mention of the existence of the Suggilamma temple in the mining area of Obulapuram and the ways leading to the temple. “So, how can one claim that there was a temple and we had demolished it”, he sought to know.

The TDP had kept quiet all through till the announcement of proposal for setting up a steel company.

“ It clearly indicates that the issue was being blown out of proportion only to gain political mileage”, he alleged.

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