New Delhi [India], August 22 : The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday carried out searches at nine locations in Jammu and Kashmir in connection with land-grabbing and corruption cases linked to custodian land property belonging to evacuees from Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK), officials said.
ED's Jammu unit carried out the searches at the nine locations, including eight in Jammu and one in Udhampur.
According to officials, the searches were conducted against Pranav Dev Singh, Patwari; Rahul Kai, Patwari; Akeel Ahmed, Naib Tehsildar; and several others allegedly involved in the case.
The probe stems from a First Information Report (FIR) registered by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (Central), Jammu and Kashmir Police, in 2022.
Investigators suspect large-scale irregularities in the transfer and illegal occupation of custodian land in the Jammu region.
Jammu and Kashmir Anti-Corruption Bureau had extracted one of the major land scams in Jammu and Kashmir, wherein custodian land in Asarwan, Mishriwala and Bhalwal area of Jammu district was found usurped by the land mafia in connivance with the officers, officials of the custodian, revenue and police departments.
Inputs were then received that custodian land in thousands of Kanal situated at Asarwan, Mishriwala and Bhalwal Jammu fraudulently grabbed by the land grabbers and gangsters in connivance with the revenue and police officers. The revenue records have been tampered with and land has been sold to many.
ACB had conducted a formal verification wherein it was found that in furtherance of the criminal conspiracy, FORM 3-A (Form Alf) along with power of attorneys (POAs) were obtained from various POK Refugees, alluring them of additional lands and providing them instant money ranging from Rs 5,000 to Rs 50,000 by the conduits of land grabbers, and thereafter insertions and additions regarding additional chunks of custodian lands were made in the revenue records by the officials of the revenue and custodian department by sheer abuse of their official positions, and these lands were sold by the conduits and attorney holders to various persons including their own gang leaders and members, by resorting to fraudulent means, thereby causing a huge loss to the government.
Owing to the establishment of, prima facie, nexus of the criminal elements and land grabbers and the revenue, custodian officers and officials in alienation of custodian land through fraudulent means, ACB has registered five formal case FIRs in Central Jammu and Kashmir for investigation under the provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act, criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery and fraud.