The YSR Congress government seems to have taken a serious note of the reports that are being published in various newspapers over the alleged acquisition of lands assigned to Dalits in the past for distribution of house sites among the landless poor.
Following instructions from chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, his political secretary in the General Administration Department Praveen Prakash has sent circulars to all the district collectors to file defamation cases against the media which has launched a negative campaign against house sites distribution programme.
According to the circular, the government is very serious over the mala fide campaign in the media to defame the historical house sites distribution programme by spreading a false propaganda that the land was being forcefully taken away from the assignees.
Describing it as a matter of grave concern, Praveen Prakash asked the collectors to conduct a press conference to condemn the same.
He told them to invite all those from who land had been acquired and who had been projected as victims by the media and make them give clarification to the media.
“They should tell the media that they had given consent for surrendering the land to the government for the purpose of this house site programme. In case, the purchaser of land is rich, you need not call him/her to the press conference, but you can also clarify this in the press,” the official told the collectors.
He asked them to initiate action for booking a defamation case for publishing false news by portraying that the government is taking land forcefully from the poor people.
Praveen Prakash asked the collectors to make arrangements for taking photos and videos of the press conferences, wherein the “victims” would tell the truth.
“These people should be sitting next to the collector in the photo. You may share the photo with me along with the video,” the CMO official instructed.