Role of Tehsildar, two DSPs under scanner

Sunit Dhawan

Tribune News Service

Rohtak, June 24

The role of police officials, tehsildar, reader and deed writer is under the scanner in a property fraud case. A plot was sold on the basis of a general power of attorney given by a dead woman who was fraudulently shown alive at the time of registration of the sale deed.

However, despite the evident fraud, certain police officials not only pressurised the complainant to withdraw the complaint and compromise with the accused but even got the FIR cancelled.

The case was reopened when the complainant approached the higher police officials, Lokayukta, High Court, CM’s window and other authorities concerned. Finally, one of the accused has been arrested and a departmental inquiry too was ordered against an inspector. The role of two DSPs and the then tehsildar in this episode is also under scanner.

Madhu, a resident of Panipat, was allegedly defrauded by her brother Praveen Kumar, a Rohtak-based dealer. Praveen allegedly sold a plot to his wife Geeta on the basis of a general power of attorney given by his mother Bimla Devi. The plot was then sold to Madhu. Madhu and her husband Vijay later discovered that the general power of attorney was invalid as Bimla Devi was dead when the plot was sold to Geeta. However, Bimla was shown alive at the time of the sale deed registration.

Madhu lodged a complaint with Rohtak SP, who then marked the matter to the economic cell of the district police. Following this, an FIR was lodged against nine persons, including Praveen, his wife Geeta, nambardar, deed writer, the then tehsildar and his reader, besides three other persons.

However, certain police officers, including an Inspector and two DSPs, who probed the matter, failed to acknowledge the apparent fraud despite documentary evidence and even got the FIR cancelled.

In the meanwhile, the complainant moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Haryana Lokayukta, CM’s window, senior police officials and other authorities concerned.

Eventually, the case was reopened and Praveen Kumar has now been arrested. In view of the cancellation of the FIR despite apparent fraud, the then Rohtak range IGP Shrikant Jadhav directed the Rohtak SP to institute a departmental inquiry against Inspector Rajesh Kumar and seek explanations from DSPs Amit Bhatia and Pradeep Kumar in this regard.