Ghaziabad police have dismantled a criminal gang that allegedly cheated people by selling land using forged documents, leading to the arrest of 10 individuals, including a former lekhpal (revenue official). The accused are accused of fabricating ownership records for land valued at crores of rupees and attempting to sell it fraudulently.
Complaint and Investigation
On Sunday, Rajkumar Agarwal filed a complaint at the Sahibabad police station, alleging that he was informed by locals that a man named Surendra Singh was trying to sell a plot of land worth approximately Rs 100 crore in Arthala village. The plot actually belonged to Agarwal, and Singh was using fraudulent means to sell it.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (trans-Hindon/city) Dhawal Jaiswal stated that police registered an FIR under sections related to fraud and forgery. A dedicated investigation team was formed, and within a day, on Monday, 10 people were apprehended.
Arrested Accused
The arrested individuals are: Surendra Singh (70), Ramesh Purohit (68), Venkate Balkrishna Dhakpade (31), Satveer Singh (60) – a retired lekhpal, Arun Kumar Shivalal (51), Raje Khan (31), Jakir Hussain (38), Sadiq (40), Hanuman Singh (42), and Ali Jafar (32).
How the Fraud Was Planned
During interrogation, Surendra Singh revealed that he had known retired lekhpal Satveer Singh for about 20 years. While Satveer was still in service, he met a broker named Shashi Gupta. Satveer informed Gupta about Agarwal's plot in Arthala village, which had been vacant for some time. Gupta then sent her associate, Venkate Balkrishna Dhakpade, to discuss the land with Satveer. Upon checking revenue records, they discovered that the plot was registered as transferable, prompting them to hatch a plan to sell it fraudulently.
Forged Documents and Fake FIR
To further their scheme, the accused filed a false report regarding the loss of original documents related to the property at the crime branch in Delhi on September 27, 2024. A notice was also published in a Faridabad newspaper on September 26, 2024, claiming the documents were lost.
DCP Jaiswal added, "The accused were in the process of obtaining the documents from the concerned department when they were arrested. Upon checking their phones, we found copies of the fraudulent FIR filed with Delhi's crime branch, newspaper cuttings, land documents, complete documents of the real owner Agarwal, and information about the dates of birth and death of all members of Agarwal's family."
The police continue to investigate the case, and further details are awaited.
