Naidu urges Centre to clear AP Land Grabbing Prohibition Bill

Vijayawada:Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu held a series of discussions with Union ministers to take the state’s developmental and other proposals forward and plead for liberal sanction of funds. Addressing the media later, the Chief Minister highlighted the critical issues facing the state. Naidu said he held talks with home minister Amit Shah, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and roads minister Nithin Gadkari.

He raised the issue land grabbing in Andhra Pradesh, saying six out of ten legal cases in the state pertained to land disputes. “The absence of proper checks and balances in the land computerization process has led to large-scale encroachments, with private lands even being included under Section 22E and taken over,” he said. Naidu explained that both urban and rural areas were affected



by this and urged the Centre to clear the AP Land Grabbing Prohibition Bill. He cited Gujarat’s existing model as a precedent and said the burden of proof should rest on the grabber, not the complainant, to curb such illegal activities.

In his talks with Amit Shah, the chief minister raised law enforcement concerns, including the prevalence of bootlegging and illicit drug cultivation in AP. He praised the EAGLE force, saying it was effectively controlling the cultivation of ganja. Naidu reiterated his government's zero-tolerance policy towards drugs and heinous crimes. To support farmers, the CM assured incentives for alternative crops to replace ganja cultivation with cash crops, and pledged continued efforts to eliminate such illicit activities.