Jammu, Apr 24: In a significant crackdown on corruption, the Jammu and Kashmir Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has exposed a major custodian land scam in Jammu district, revealing large-scale illegal occupation and fraudulent allotments involving revenue officials, land grabbers and beneficiaries.
Spokesperson in a statement issued here to news agency Kashmir News Corner — KNC, ACB again achieved a major success in extracting one of the major land scams in Jammu and Kashmir, wherein custodian land in Asarwan, Mishriwala, Bhalwal and R.S. Pura area of Jammu district has been found usurped by the land mafia in connivance with Form Alaf holders and the officers/officials of Custodian/Revenue department.
Inputs were received that custodian land in thousands of kanals situated at Asarwan, Mishriwala, Bhalwal and R.S. Pura Jammu has been fraudulently grabbed by land grabbers/gangsters in connivance with revenue officers/officials. The revenue records have been tempered and land has been sold to various persons.
On the basis of the inputs received by ACB, a verification was initiated and on the basis of the verification conducted earlier, it was found that more than 1000 kanals of custodian land was shown allotted to displaced persons on the basis of fake orders, who were otherwise not entitled for allotment of additional land. This was done through fraudulent means by land grabbers/Form Alaf holders in connivance with officers/officials of the Revenue department and others.
Accordingly, 24 case FIRs were registered by the ACB, in which the investigation is still in progress.
Again, during the course of verification, it has been found that displaced persons of Pakistan (PAK/POK refugees) were already allotted land in their favour, but even then kith and kin of these families, although not entitled, being Form Alaf holders, in connivance with concerned Patwaris/Girdawars/Naib Tehsildars/Tehsildars of the Revenue Department, got mutations of additional land at R.S. Pura and Domana areas of district Jammu attested in their favour either without any Government/Provisional Rehabilitation Office (PRO) order or on fake Government/PRO orders.
During verification, it has also been found that no such orders of allotment of land were issued by the office of the PRO. These persons, after getting mutation of lands in their favour, alienated the said land directly or through their attorney holders/conduits to various persons by resorting to fraudulent means, thereby causing a huge loss to the government exchequer.
Owing to the establishment of prima facie nexus of criminal elements/land grabbers/Form Alaf holders and revenue officers/officials in alienation of about 20 kanals 09 marlas of custodian land through fraudulent means, ACB has now registered another 03 formal case FIRs in P/S ACB Central J&K for in-depth investigation under the provisions of J&K Prevention of Corruption Act, criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery and fraud against the accused persons namely (1) Waryam Singh S/O Sh. Shalo Ram R/O Village Kotli Bhagwan Singh (Kuttu Chack) Tehsil R.S. Pura District Jammu then Patwari, (2) Balak Ram S/O Late Sh. Buti Ram R/O Village Tootray Tehsil R.S. Pura, Jammu then Naib Tehsildar, (3) Mohan Singh S/O Sh. Bhagwan Singh R/O Nanak Nagar Jammu, (4) Prem Singh S/O Sh. Churu Ram R/O Baggan Tehsil Bilawar, Kathua, then Patwari, (5) Bharat Bushan Mehra S/O Harbans Lal R/O Mamka, R.S. Pura, Jammu, (6) Rahul Kai S/O Late Sh. Deep Raj R/O H. No. 39, New Company Bagh Canal Road, Jammu, then Patwari, (7) Saqib Saleem S/O Sh. Saleem Ahmed R/O 54 Majheer Thana Mandi Rajouri then Tehsildar, (8) Sat Pal S/O Sh. Nanak Chand R/O Gadi Garh, Jammu and others. (KNC)
