Palampur land scam: SDM cancels fraudulent transfers

The functioning of the Palampur tehsil office has come under serious scrutiny following the unearthing of a multi-crore land scam. In a shocking revelation, 101 kanals of land were illegally transferred to a few individuals in collusion with revenue officers, thereby dispossessing twenty families who had been residing on the land for the past 80 years.

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The scam came to light recently, prompting Palampur SDM Netra Mehta to take swift action. The SDM cancelled the illegal mutations and set aside the fraudulent sales deeds executed by the Naib Tehsildar. However, the extent of involvement of other officials from the Palampur Tehsil Office remains under investigation.

Acting on media reports published in The Tribune, the Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister’s Office has taken cognisance of the matter. The Chief Minister is reportedly monitoring the investigation, which is being carried out by the State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau. Additionally, senior officers of the Revenue Department have also launched a parallel inquiry.

According to sources, the Vigilance Bureau has already summoned all relevant records from the tehsil office. The land was claimed by six local women who allegedly used a fake death certificate of a Christian woman, Rozna Saraf, to establish ownership. Astonishingly, revenue officers accepted this certificate without verification and declared the women as legal heirs, despite the absence of any adoption deed or documentary proof of inheritance. It has also been revealed that the death certificate of Saraf—who neither resided nor died in Banuri (Palampur)—was issued from Banuri nearly 50 years after her death.

In a blatant violation of the Himachal Pradesh Land Tenancy and Reform Act, 1972, the Naib Tehsildar erased tenant entries that had existed for 80 years from the revenue records and facilitated the registration of the land in the names of three persons. Legal experts have pointed out that even the State High Court lacks the authority to remove such long-standing entries without due process.

Moreover, the seven sales deeds registered for the land do not mention the mode of payment—a mandatory requirement as per government notification. Under existing rules, sales above Rs 2 lakh cannot be executed in cash and must comply with Section 269 of the Income Tax Act, which also prohibits cash transactions exceeding this amount for property deals.

The scale of violations and administrative oversight in this case has sparked public outrage, and the probe is expected to widen as more officials may be implicated.