Member of Parliament A.Revanth Reddy has levelled allegations that the ruling party leaders have resorted to massive corruption in distribution of flood relief to the eligible residents in Hyderabad.
Staging a protest in front of the GHMC head office here on Monday along with other leaders from the Congress party, Mr. Revanth Reddy has alleged that half of the flood relief has been pocketed by the TRS leaders, as seen from the field-level experience.
He said the cash distribution instead of direct bank transfer was devised solely with a view to buy votes in the coming GHMC elections. Unable to meet GHMC Commissioner D. S. Lokesh Kumar despite prior appointment, he accused him of “fleeing” from office out of fear.
In his representation to the Commissioner, Mr.Revanth Reddy said he was surprised to learn about the plunder in the name of flood relief during his visit to areas such as L.B.Nagar, Malkajgiri and Kukatpally, and cited issues such as compensation paid to multiple persons in the same family, distribution in areas unaffected by floods, partial disbursement, and nil disbursement to the deserving residents.
He alleged collusion between GHMC officials and TRS leaders, and questioned why the relief had to be distributed in cash, unlike COVID-19 relief of ₹1,500 which was deposited in bank accounts, and why no written instructions have been issued enunciating the disbursement procedure.
The corporation headquarters witnessed one more protest by Aam Aadmi Party, which has rallied several tenants from areas such as Khairatabad, Musheerabad and Amberpet, with allegations that the relief disbursement was made to house owners, and not to the affected tenants.
Staging a sit in, several women protested displaying their Aadhaar cards, and alleging that the officials disappeared after taking the OTPs (One Time Password) dispatched to the mobile phones of the flood affected.