Ludhiana: Court orders FIR against 3 in alleged land grab case

The court of Judicial Magistrate Karun Kumar has directed the SHO of Sadar police station to register an FIR against Harwinder Singh, alias Nihang, a resident of Saiyan Kala, Ludhiana; Balkirat Singh of Noorwala Road, Ludhiana; and Vassu Madan of Dhandra Road, Ludhiana, in connection with an alleged land grab case.

The order came on a complaint filed by Sumeet Sofat, a resident of Hira Road, Ludhiana, who alleged that the accused fraudulently prepared documents and attempted to take illegal possession of his 3,000 sq yd property located near Lodhi Club, Sunet village, Ludhiana, which he claimed to have been in possession of for over 24 years.

After examining the status report filed by the SHO and documents placed on record, the court observed that prima facie the preparation of the rent deed appeared to be fraudulent.

The court expressed surprise that despite the police having concluded during preliminary inquiry that a cognisable offence had been committed, no FIR was registered and the matter was merely forwarded to higher officers.

“Preparation of the rent deed by Harwinder in favour of Balkirat and Vassu prima facie shows that the document has been forged,” the court held. It also granted liberty to the investigating officer to add or remove sections as per facts emerging during investigation and to identify and nominate any other individual found involved.

According to the complaint, the accused forcibly entered the property on February 14, 2025, broke the front gate lock, damaged the lawn and boundary wall and installed poles. When the complainant objected and called the police, a team from Lalton Chowki arrived, but the accused managed to flee. However, Vassu was allegedly found inside the property with his motorcycle and he produced a forged rent deed claiming tenancy rights.

Sofat claimed that the rent deed was fraudulently prepared by Harwinder to falsely show his ownership and to present Balkirat and Vassu as tenants. He further pointed out that an FIR had already been registered against Harwinder and others in a related matter, and another FIR had been lodged for selling the same property on the basis of forged documents.

Despite his repeated complaints to the police and senior officers, no FIR was registered in the present instance, prompting him to approach the court.