STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: Three days after surprise raids in land grabbing cases for missing revenue record, Jammu Police have framed a six-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe as names of senior officials also surfaced during the investigations.
“Six member SIT has been constituted to probe the missing revenue record. More arrests including of many property dealers and land grabbers is on cards,” official said.
The SIT is headed by SP Headquarters Ramneesh Gupta while SDPO East DySP Syed Zafar, SHO Channi Himmat, Inspector Deepak Katoch, Chief Prosecuting Officer, Pooja Nijan, a sub inspector and a head constable are the other members.
“The record seized during raids on Sunday in the residences of former revenue officials is being scrutinised by the special committee,” sources added.
The raids were carried out on the directions of the Divisional Administration headed by Jammu Divisional Commissioner Raghav Langer.
Four revenue officials including retired, have also been taken into custody for tampering with records to facilitate the land mafia in encroaching and grabbing state land. They include Sadiq Poswal, property dealer Mohd Bashir, retired Tehsildar, Dharam Pal and Ghulam Rasool, both retired Girdawars. All these accused are on 8-day police remand.
“As per initial reports, the arrested persons have made several disclosures during questioning and named few property dealers who were involved in sale and purchase of thousand kanals of encroached/grabbed state land,” sources added.
“The property dealers whose names are revealed are on the SIT’s radar and their properties and businesses are also under scanner,” sources said, adding, “the list of names is ready and the arrests can come anytime soon.”
Following the suspicious disappearances of Jamabandis, Lathas and other land records in Jammu South, 21 joint police-revenue teams on last Sunday raided houses and offices of many land grabbers, property leaders and revenue officials in Sunjwan, Chowadhi, Greater Kailash, Sanjay Nagar, Janipur, Gujjar Nagar, Bahu, Sidhra, Trikuta Nagar Extension and Satwari area in Jammu and Sarore in Samba District.
The persons raided upon were allegedly involved in murky land deals, forgery, destruction of revenue records, land grabbing, encroachments over state land; etc, based on the inputs received from various sources.
The raids followed the investigation in FIR 182/2021 registered on November 7, 2021 in Police Station Channi Himmat regarding missing of revenue records viz. Lathas, Masavis of village Chowadi and Sunjuwan of Tehsil Bahu.