PANAJI
As land grab cases continue to haunt the State, another case has surfaced wherein a Will from 1975, created 15 years after the original owner died in 1960, was allegedly used to sell a property to a buyer in Noida.
The Goan family, currently based in Mumbai, realised the fraud only recently prompting a police complaint.
According to complainants of 13 De Sa family members, the property located at Sangolda in survey no 87/15, originally owned by Artimizia Lobo, wife of Diogo Joao de Sa, was illegally sold.
“Artimizia passed away in 1960, leaving behind her husband, Diogo Joao De Sa, and five children who became the co-owners of the property,” it said.
With more than 18 legal heirs, the family alleges that one of the family members, Ceasar de Sa, allegedly unlawfully sold the property without informing the other 16 living legal heirs.
However, since the matter does not fall under the purview of the Special Investigation Team (land grab), the complaint has been forwarded to the Saligao police station for probe.
“Under the foundation of law, Diogo could not dispose of the entire property, as it did not belong to him. He could only bequeath his share of 50 per cent. Being bedridden, he could not have gone out of the house on his own to register a will at a place which is 21 km away from his residence,” Keith Ferreira, another complainant in the case, said.
The family got a forensic examination of the documents done through private certified experts in Mumbai, who confirmed the Will “could be fake.”
“No such Will is registered at the alleged place mentioned in the sale deed. Moreover, the illegal sale deed mentions that Artimizia De Sa passed away in 1943, nearly 20 years before she actually died in 1960. The illegalities are confirmed and Caesar did not have a clear title,” Ferreira said.
Ferreira further alleged that the accused submitted two different Wills before the Court but admitted in the Witness box that there's only one Will. "He is unable to explain the two Wills. This also shows there's fraud," he added.
Moreover, the buyer confirmed under oath that he has neither seen the original nor any certified Will. Both the Wills were sent for forensic tests, copies of which have been submitted to the police for probe.
"An RTI reply from the Sangolda Panchayat reveals that purchaser's lawyer advised against buying the property as there's no clear and marketable title. But the buyer took the risk to purchase it," he said.
What’s interesting is that the Noida-based hospitality owner purchased the property despite his lawyer’s negative report on the title of the property in the alleged Bogus Will.
The Goan spoke to a senior police officer, who asserted the local police station has already registered a First Information Report against the accused. “We are investigating the case,” he said.
