The Telangana Anti-Corruption Bureau arrested an Abdullapurmet tahsildar and a mandal surveyor for allegedly demanding and accepting a Rs 20 lakh bribe to conduct a survey and issue a joint inspection report for a layout under Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority guidelines.
The officials were identified as Tahsildar B. Sudershan Reddy and Mandal Surveyor Batuka Srinivasulu of Abdullapurmet mandal in Ranga Reddy district. According to the ACB, the officials had initially demanded Rs 30 lakh from the complainant before reducing the amount to Rs 20 lakh.
The ACB said its officials apprehended Srinivasulu near Abdullapurmet while he was allegedly accepting the money on the instructions of the tahsildar. The entire alleged bribe amount was recovered from his possession during the trap, according to the report.
The case concerns a survey and joint inspection report linked to a layout being processed under HMDA guidelines. Such survey and inspection documents form part of the administrative process through which land and layout-related applications are examined by the authorities. The ACB report, as cited by Telangana Today, did not provide further details about the layout, its location, the applicant or the stage of the application.
The bureau also said the fingers of both hands of the surveyor tested positive during a chemical examination conducted after the trap. The test result is part of the evidence cited by the investigating agency in the case; the allegations will be subject to proceedings before the competent court.
Both officials were arrested and are scheduled to be produced before the Principal Special Judge for SPE and ACB Cases at Nampally in Hyderabad. The case remains under investigation, and the report did not state whether any further arrests or administrative action had been taken.
The alleged transaction places revenue-level scrutiny and metropolitan layout regulation at the centre of the case. Abdullapurmet, located in the rapidly urbanising Ranga Reddy district, falls within the wider development environment shaped by HMDA planning and layout requirements. The matter therefore involves not only an alleged exchange of money but also the administrative stage at which a survey and joint inspection report was sought.
The ACB’s action follows a trap operation based on the complainant’s allegation that the officials demanded money for carrying out the survey and preparing the report. The agency has not yet disclosed additional findings from the investigation in the information available.
The two arrested officials will be produced before the special court at Nampally, while the Telangana ACB continues its investigation into the alleged demand, acceptance and role of each official.
