Govt to expose every Dharani irregularity

Code audit ordered; forensic probe to cover all districts  

metro india news  I hyderabad

Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy, Minister for Revenue, Housing and Information & Public Relations, on Wednesday declared that the government will not compromise on issues concerning people’s lands and asserted that every irregularity committed under the Dharani system will be brought to light. He announced that forensic audits will be conducted in all districts, on the lines of those already undertaken in Rajanna Sircilla district and Siddipet district.

Chairing a review meeting with a high-level committee at the Secretariat, the Minister said the inquiry into the functioning of the Dharani portal has revealed disturbing and systemic irregularities. He remarked that the situation resembles “pulling a thread that shakes the entire system,” indicating deep-rooted flaws.

The high-level committee, constituted to probe alleged misuse of loopholes in the Dharani portal leading to evasion of stamp duty and registration charges, 

has unearthed startling findings. Preliminary investigations indicate that the issue is not a mere technical lapse but the result of systematic and deliberate design flaws. Security deficiencies identified during earlier audits were reportedly not rectified, yet reports suggested that the system was functioning without issues. The Minister noted that the portal was allegedly structured in a way that enabled human interference and manipulation. In several cases, suspicious land transaction data was made inaccessible, certain logins were deleted, and confidential access credentials went missing. He also pointed out that the earlier forensic audit did not include a code audit and directed officials to immediately undertake a comprehensive code audit of the portal.

Stating that entrusting portal maintenance to a foreign firm had contributed to complications, the Minister affirmed that, as per the directions of Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, strict action will be taken against those who siphoned off government revenues through stamp duty and registration fee manipulation. “Not a single rupee due to the government will be spared,” he asserted.

Officials were instructed to ensure that the proposed Bhu Bharati portal is transparent, tamper-proof, citizen-friendly and free from discretionary interference.