Hyderabad: Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar on Thursday, July 30, alleged that the 15th Finance Commission grants meant for Telangana Gram Panchayats were being misused and sought a high-level probe into the matter.
In a letter addressed to Union Minister of Panchayati Raj, Rajiv Ranjan Singh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said that several sarpanchs and panchayat pradhans from his Parliamentary Constituency Karimnagar, have submitted representations highlighting anomalies in the implementation of the grant provisions.
He alleged that funds have been spent in deviation from prescribed norms of the Central Finance Commission, which could potentially undermine the financial autonomy and functional efficacy of the panchayats.
The minister had previously issued a similar statement on July 17. He had said that so far, a total of Rs 2293.75 crore has been released by the central government under the 15th Finance Commission for 2020-21 to 2025-26 and Rs 729.41 crore remains pending.
However, these funds were being used to clear electricity arrears, diesel dues, pending contractor bills and salaries of sanitation staff instead of being used for village development.
His claims were later refuted by Telangana’s Panchayat Raj & Rural Employment Department. The minister has still demanded for an impartial verification of facts to uphold the principles of transparency, accountability, and fiscal discipline.
This post was last modified on July 30, 2026 10:05 pm