Land Fraud Committee meet:
Garhwal Post Bureau
DEHRADUN, 2 May: The Government has claimed that the impact of the Chief Minister’s ‘zero tolerance’ policy is becoming evident even in cases of land fraud. Chairing a high-level meeting of the Land Fraud Coordination Committee (LFCC) at the camp office in Survey Chowk here on Saturday, Garhwal Commissioner Vinay Shankar Pandey reviewed the compliance reports and examined 125 cases, including 20 pending and 105 newly registered cases. The committee disposed of 45 cases and at the same time, directed registration of FIRs in 24 serious cases.
Of the new cases, Dehradun accounted for the highest number with 74, followed by Haridwar with 15, Pauri with 13, Tehri with 2 and Chamoli with 1. The Commissioner made it clear that under the State government’s zero tolerance policy, land frauds would not be tolerated under any circumstances. He directed the officials to ensure swift and effective disposal of such cases and ordered joint inspections to be completed within the week.
Pandey further emphasised that the committee’s meetings are crucial and are being held every 15 days to monitor progress. In the latest review, 24 cases were found to be extremely serious, warranting immediate FIRs. These included complaints against persons including Uday Singh, Sucheta Semwal, Rajiv Jayalwal, Gulab Singh, Kiran Bagdi, Ajay Kumar, Sanjeev Garg, Mithlesh Singhal, Jagdamba Rawat, Arjun Singh and Samarji Devi, involving illegal fencing, encroachment and tampering with land records. It was shared in the meeting that the investigations have revealed startling facts, including sale of land without ownership, manipulation of khasra numbers to mislead buyers and fraudulent sales where two bighas of land were shown as four. The Commissioner directed police to take strict action in these cases and ordered FIRs in 11 other serious matters of land fraud and illegal possession.
Besides the 24 FIR-worthy cases, 45 other matters were also resolved. Some were settled through mutual compromise, others through administrative intervention where money was refunded, while certain disputes were found pending in civil courts relating to cancellation of sale deeds and not involving fraud. The Commissioner clarified that such cases would be disposed of through judicial process.
Expressing displeasure over delays in major land-related cases, the Commissioner directed the officials to ensure concrete progress within 15 days. He ordered immediate action in cases where illegal construction has already been established and directed mandatory FIRs in all clear instances of fraud. He also asked that complainants be informed in cases not related to fraud. Preventive measures must be taken at the initial stage to identify disputes and avoid complications in future.
Pandey further directed that except for the cases pending in court, all other cases must be resolved promptly at the departmental level and no land-related case should remain unnecessarily pending.
Among those present at the meeting included IG Garhwal Rajiv Swaroop, Additional Commissioner Uttam Singh Chauhan, ADM KK Mishra, ADM Tehri Shailendra Singh Negi, SP (Rural) Jaya Baluni, DGC Nitin Vashisht, SDM Doiwala Aparna Dhaundiyal, SDM Kumkum Joshi, SDM Yamkeshwar Chhattar Singh Chauhan, SDM Gairsain Ahmad Abrar, Deputy Registrar Stamps Ramdatt Mishra, along with senior officers and tehsildars of all concerned tehsils who joined virtually.
