STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: The Crime Branch of Jammu and Kashmir Police on Tuesday chargesheeted two property dealers from Kathua in connection with a major land scam involving a fraudulent transaction of Rs 1.25 crore.
The accused have been identified as Devinder Singh, son of Jai Singh, resident of Ward No. 10, Kathua, and Anil Kumar, son of Bishamber Dass, resident of Baira, Kathua.
According to the official spokesperson of the Crime Branch, an FIR (No. 24/2024) was registered based on a written complaint filed in 2024 by Jaswinder Singh of Pathankot, Punjab and Verinder Sharma of Greater Kailash, Jammu. The complainants, partners in the firm Transworld Infra Developers and Builders, alleged that they were duped while attempting to establish a manufacturing unit in Kathua. The accused, Devinder Singh and Anil Kumar, approached the complainants and falsely claimed ownership of 270 kanals of land situated at Village Govindsar, Kathua. They produced fabricated land ownership documents and fraudulently collected Rs 1.25 crore from the complainants. Subsequent verification revealed that the accused did not own the land in question and had misrepresented facts to cheat the victims.
During the investigation, the Crime Branch gathered sufficient evidence and established the commission of offences under Sections 420, 465, 467, 468, and 120-B of the IPC. Both accused were arrested and the chargesheet was filed on Tuesday before the Court of Special Mobile Magistrate, Kathua, for judicial proceedings.
The CB spokesperson further stated that Devinder Singh was previously involved in a similar fraud case (FIR No. 323/2020) registered at Police Station Kathua under multiple IPC sections including cheating, criminal conspiracy, forgery, and criminal intimidation. The offences were proven and a challan had already been produced against him.
Senior Superintendent of Police, Crime Jammu, Benam Tosh confirmed the arrests and chargesheet, reaffirming the Crime Branch’s commitment to acting swiftly against white-collar crimes and frauds to protect public interest.