Retired revenue official held in 30-year-old Gurugram land scam
The official allegedly changed the nomenclature of 100 of acres of protected land in Raisina village in government records paving way for realtors to purchase the plots and construct farm houses on them on a large scale, officials said.
After almost 30 years of a mass scale forgery and 10 years of inquiry, the anti-corruption bureau (ACB) of the Haryana government arrested a retired revenue official for allegedly changing the nomenclature of 100 of acres of protected land in Raisina village in government records paving way for realtors to purchase the plots and construct farm houses on them on a large scale, officials said on Thursday.
The suspect was identified as Rai Singh, aged above 70 years, a resident of Inchapuri in Pataudi. Singh was arrested on Tuesday and was forwarded to judicial custody after production before a court on Wednesday.
A senior ACB official said that the entire scam is almost three decades old and it took place when Singh was posted as the patwari (a village-level official responsible for maintaining land records, measuring land, and updating property information) of the Raisina village between 1994 and 1998.
“Singh changed the nomenclature of several acres of protected land of eco-sensitive Aravalli in Raisina between 1995 and 1996 on annual mutation records,” said the ACB official.
“Singh’s forgery in connivance with realtors resulted in these strictly prohibited land in the Aravalli range be used for construction of farm houses on large scale,” he said, adding that Singh is the first arrest in the case and further arrests of top officials from some real estate firms will be made soon.
ACB officials said that the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change had issued a notification on May 7, 1992 defining that no constructions or mining activity could take place without prior government permission over the forest areas either protected or restricted, uncultivable wasteland (gair mumkin pahad) of protected Aravalli hills, land acquired under Petroleum and Minerals Pipelines (Acquisition of Right of Unser in Land) Act and some other categories.
{{/usCountry}}ACB officials said that the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change had issued a notification on May 7, 1992 defining that no constructions or mining activity could take place without prior government permission over the forest areas either protected or restricted, uncultivable wasteland (gair mumkin pahad) of protected Aravalli hills, land acquired under Petroleum and Minerals Pipelines (Acquisition of Right of Unser in Land) Act and some other categories.
{{/usCountry}}According to officials, Singh changed the nomenclature category of these uncultivable wastelands of protected Aravalli to show them as farmhouse lands and roads.
{{/usCountry}}According to officials, Singh changed the nomenclature category of these uncultivable wastelands of protected Aravalli to show them as farmhouse lands and roads.
{{/usCountry}}After internal inquiry, all these land on which the construction was done, were found to be of prohibited category as per the mutation records of 1991-1992, ACB officials said.
{{/usCountry}}After internal inquiry, all these land on which the construction was done, were found to be of prohibited category as per the mutation records of 1991-1992, ACB officials said.
{{/usCountry}}Officials said that the FIR in the case was registered on the basis of a complaint filed by an environmentalist in 2014 on which an inquiry was initiated.
“The inquiry was finally completed last year following which approval was pending from the higher authorities for registering an FIR. As soon as the sanction was granted, this FIR was registered,” another senior ACB official said.
Officials said that an FIR was registered against Rai, several other retired government officials, developers and their firms under sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 167 (public servant framing incorrect document with intent to cause injury), 218 (public servant framing incorrect record) and 420 (cheating) of Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act at the ACB police station in Gurugram on July 2.
Officials said that two FIRs were registered at the ACB Gurugram police station post-inquiry.
“One is related to the Raisina village, the second FIR pertains to the similar forgery committed by another patwari of Sohna village in connivance with other officials and realtors,” said the second official, adding that no arrest has taken place yet in the second case.
