Ex-SDM among 3 arrested for Rs 240-cr land fraud: Delhi ACB

A former SDM and two revenue officials were arrested here on Wednesday by the Delhi government's anti-corruption branch in a Rs 240 crore land fraud case. The trio had in 2018 had allegedly transferred a piece of government land, measuring around 35,000 sq yards, in West Delhi's Tatarpur village to private parties, the branch's officials said.

Those arrested are former sub-divisional magistrate Ramesh Kumar, the then tehsildar Surender Kumar and a revenue official Manjeet Singh, a senior officer of the anti-corruption branch (ACB) said. The SDM had taken voluntary retirement in July 2018, a month after the inquiry was initiated, he said.

"The arrests were made after collecting sufficient evidence. Further investigation of this case is in progress to unearth the larger conspiracy with regard to misappropriation of government land," the officer told PTI. According to the ACB, portions of the land belonged to the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), which owned a major part.

"The government acquired the land in the 1970s from a man, who is no longer alive. He was given a compensation of around Rs 2 lakh at the time. But last year, the accused officials colluded with the daughters of the deceased man and mutated the land in their name," the official said.

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