10 persons seel plot reserved for Metro rail to the board, pretending to be its owners; vanish with compensations
10 persons seel plot reserved for Metro rail to the board, pretending to be its owners; vanish with compensationsu00a0
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The Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB), under scanner for major land acquisition irregularities, has been cheated by 10 businessmen of land worth Rs 14 crore. The accused claimed to be the owners of au00a0 plot reserved for the ongoing Metro rail work near Gaali Anjaneya Temple on Mysore Road. They agreed to sell 6.6 square metre of the land to KIADB.
The fraud came to light when the real owner of the plot of land approached KIADB seeking an explanation for trespassing into his property without notice. He was taken aback when the KIADB officials showed him the agreement between the 10 persons who agreed to sell "their" land and claimed compensation. Even after being explained the truth, the board officials did not buy his version, after which the owner approached the High Court and asked for a stay order. Ironically, the KIADB officials, sensing suspicion in the transaction, also got them to sign an undertaking, asking them to return the compensation amount, if anything went wrong.
Soon after the scam came to light KIADB, tried to contact the sellers but in vain. "Even after sending dozens of reminders and notices, they neither replied nor turned up to clarify," said a officer from the KIADB.
Further verification ofu00a0 records revealed that the accused had forged the documents to claim the compensation, which the board failed to notice. Taking note of this, a Special Land Acquisition officer has filed a complaint against the businessmen who duped the board and made away with the compensation amount.
The Upparpet Police has taken up the case.
Inspector Lokeshwar said, "We have booked a case on the charges of cheating and forgery against the 10 persons and sought relevant documents from the KIADB."
