By Arun Pratap Singh
Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 24 Feb: Dehradun continues to witness a series of land frauds and illegal sale of land based on forged documents. In a recent case involving the illegal sale and purchase of land prohibited by court orders and linked to the Golden Forest scam, District Magistrate Savin Bansal has taken stern cognisance and directed the registration of an FIR against the buyer and seller at City Police Station. The district administration has also indicated a decisive crackdown on builders and land mafia allegedly targeting agricultural and government lands in the State, particularly those properties which are presently under complete judicial embargo due to ongoing litigation.
This particular case pertains to land situated at Mauja Aamwala Tarla bearing Khasra Nos 94Kha, 134, 135 and 136. The said land is covered by judicial restraint orders, with a competent court having imposed a complete ban on its sale and purchase as the entire matter is sub judice. Despite the subsisting prohibition, it came to light that the property was allegedly registered on the basis of fabricated and forged documents. A complainant objected to Sale Deed Nos 8614/2025 and 8615/2025, stating that the land falls within the restricted category connected with PACL (Pearls Agrotech Corporation Limited) and Golden Forest-related assets, both of which have been under prolonged judicial scrutiny.
During preliminary inquiry in the present matter, it was found that the seller allegedly concealed the true status of the land while executing the sale deeds. Despite the land being disputed and covered by judicial prohibitions, the transaction was carried out in apparent violation of the court orders. The administration has treated the development as a grave attempt to bypass legal restrictions through forged records and misrepresentation.
Taking serious note of the violation, DM Savin Bansal directed that criminal proceedings be initiated against the buyer and seller. An FIR has been registered at the City Police Station at Paltan Bazaar under Section 83 of the Registration Act, 1908, pertaining to fraudulent registration, along with other relevant stringent provisions relating to forgery, cheating and conspiracy under the relevant provisions of BNS. The administration has made it clear that any attempt to tamper with court-protected properties will invite strict penal action.
On the directions of the DM, the Registrar, Dehradun, and SDM (Sadar) have been directed to undertake a comprehensive re-examination of the impugned sale deeds. If mutation orders have been passed on the strength of these documents, the Tehsildar has been directed to cancel such entries without delay. The role of the Sub-Registrar office, Dehradun is also under investigation, and administrative action against any official found negligent or complicit is under active consideration. It is learnt that, on the lines of a recent inspection conducted at the Rishikesh Sub-Registrar office, a detailed inspection of the Dehradun Registrar office may soon be carried out to tighten oversight and prevent recurrence of such transactions.
Bansal has categorically stated that violation of judicial orders and sale of properties attached in major financial scams will not be tolerated under any circumstances. He emphasised that the administration is committed to protecting court-restricted and investor-linked assets from illegal encroachment or transfer. Officials have also been directed to scrutinise similar transactions across the district and initiate stringent action wherever discrepancies are found.
It may be recalled that Dehradun has witnessed several prominent land fraud cases in recent years involving forged registration deeds and manipulation of decades-old revenue records. Investigations in some of these cases, as reported earlier by Garhwal Post, had revealed the alleged involvement of certain practising lawyers and property dealers operating from Dehradun and neighbouring Saharanpur. In a few instances, arrests were made after forged powers of attorney, fabricated sale agreements and tampered khasra records were unearthed by the Special Investigation Team and district authorities. Despite such crackdowns, attempts to grab high-value land through fraudulent documentation and collusive registration practices have continued to surface from time to time, raising concerns about systemic vulnerabilities in land record management and the need for sustained vigilance.
It may further be recalled that the Golden Forest case, which surfaced in the late 1990s, involved large-scale mobilisation of funds from investors across several States through plantation and land-linked schemes. Subsequent investigations revealed serious financial irregularities, leading to intervention by regulatory authorities and attachment of vast tracts of land. Over the years, various courts, including the Supreme Court, have passed orders restraining the sale or alienation of properties linked to Golden Forest in order to safeguard the interests of investors and to prevent dissipation of assets while the matter remains pending adjudication. As a result, a blanket prohibition continues on the transfer of such properties until final disposal of the case.
