Dharani land records scam: CID raids across Telangana, four arrested

Telangana’s Crime Investigation Department (CID) has carried out raids in several places and arrested four people in its investigation into irregularities in the Dharani land records portal. The arrests were reported by The New Indian Express on 8 November; the names of those arrested and the cases against them were not immediately available.

The background

Dharani, launched by the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government in 2020 to put all land records online, became a political flashpoint. The Congress government, which came to power in 2023, alleged that the portal was used to transfer government and assigned land into private hands, and replaced it with a new system, Bhu Bharati.

A forensic audit reportedly flagged more than 10,000 suspicious transactions. In August 2026, the government set up a special enquiry team headed by senior IPS officer Charu Sinha, Additional Director General of Police (CID), and the Telangana High Court has directed the CID to examine whether public officials were involved. In January, police arrested 15 people in Jangaon district over registrations on the Dharani and Bhu Bharati portals that allegedly cost the government ₹3.9 crore.

What’s next

The CID is expected to question those arrested about how records were altered and who benefited. The BRS has accused the government of using the probe for political ends; the government says it is recovering land that belongs to the public.