Fadnavis Push to Reclaim 14 Disputed Border Villages with Telangana, Decades After Handover To Unified Andhra

Time of India

3 days ago

Nagpur/Chandrapur: In a key move to resolve a decades-old interstate border impasse, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday directed state officials to initiate steps to include 14 disputed villages from Chandrapur's Jiwti tehsil — currently claimed by both Maharashtra and Telangana — into the state's jurisdiction.
The directive was issued at a high-level meeting at the state legislature complex in Mumbai, attended by revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, Rajura MLA Devaraj Bhongle, Chandrapur district collector Vinay Gowda, and residents of affected villages. "A final decision is expected soon, which will bring long-awaited relief to villagers," said Bawankule.
The villages — Antapur, Padmavati, Indiranagar, Palsaguda, Yesapur, Bhelapathar, Lendiguda, Yesapur (Narayanaguda), Shankarlodhi, Maharajguda, Kotha (Bk), Paramdoli, Mukadamguda, and Lendijala — have lived in administrative limbo for decades, with residents voting in both Maharashtra and Telangana elections and receiving civic services from both states.
"These villages have two gram panchayats, two schools, two water tanks, and two sets of elected representatives," said MLA Bhongle, adding the population is entirely Marathi-speaking and all daily transactions are in Marathi.
While the villages fall under Maharashtra's revenue boundaries, Telangana continues to exercise administrative control over many of them. "Maharashtra has built roads, schools, and water supply schemes here, while Telangana provides electricity.
But these villagers still don't have official land titles," Bhongle said.
TOI visited these remote hamlets in April 2024 and published detailed news on how the unique border situation has created a myriad of administrative and social complexities. Most citizens not only possessed dual election cards of Maharashtra and Telangana, but also ration and health cards. Even electricity lines are laid by power entities from both states, although no one legally purchases meters and draws power illegally.
Also, villages boast two sarpanchs and gram panchayats, representing the bifurcated administrative structure. Education is provided in two languages — Marathi and Telugu — with separate schools catering to each linguistic group.
The dispute dates back to December 12, 1989, when the Sharad Pawar-led Maharashtra cabinet reportedly agreed to hand over the villages to then undivided Andhra Pradesh. However, the decision was stayed the following year after legal objections raised in the Assembly by three-time firebrand MLA from Rajura, Wamanrao Chatap.
"Under Article 3 of the Constitution, only the Centre has the authority to alter state boundaries," Chatap told TOI, adding the cabinet decision was later overruled by the Manohar Joshi govt.
The govt of undivided Andhra Pradesh, meanwhile, integrated these villages into its revenue circle and sought judicial backing in its own high court. In response, the Maharashtra govt challenged the move in Supreme Court, which ruled that such inter-state disputes cannot be adjudicated by one state's High Court and directed both states to approach the Centre.
The matter has remained unresolved since.
Talking to TOI, Chatap now 73 years old, said, "The CM must urge the Prime Minister's Office to call a joint meeting with the Union home minister, chief ministers of both states, representatives from Election Commission, and local MPs and MLAs. Only a consensus with central approval can settle the matter," he said.
The issue gained urgency as residents, displaced during the 1972 Marathwada famine, continue to live on unallocated forest land without land rights. Tuesday's directive is being seen as the most serious attempt yet to regularise their status and bring clarity to a uniquely anomalous administrative situation.