MARGAO
The infamous land grab case registered by the Fatorda police in June last year against the 15 persons involved in forging documents in mutation proceedings before the Salcete Mamlatdar to get their names included in Form IX of the properties has been handed over to the Special Investigating Team (SIT).
The Fatorda police had last year registered FIRs against 15 persons under various provisions of the IPC, including section 420 for cheating and forgery in connection with the complaint lodged by the Salcete Mamlatdar in the forged mutations cases.
The accused persons hail from various villages in Salcete and have been booked under Section 465, 468, 471, 420(b) read with section 34 of the IPC.
In the FIR, the Fatorda police had alleged that the accused persons with their common intention created forged title documents -- Deed of Succession, Deed of Sale, Tenancy Purchase Certificate, Deed of family partition -- and used them as genuine and produced the same before the Mamlatdar/Joint Mamlatdar, Salcete in mutation proceedings and got their names included in Form IX of properties.
The properties including survey numbers 445/1 of Curtorim village, 260/1, 271/1 of Raia village, 3/3 of Davorlim village, 390/18, 390/12 of Cuncolim village, 290/14 of Sao Jose de Areal village, 5/7 of Gandaulim village, 24/15 of Colva village, 191/4 of Dramapur village by deleting the names of the orginal occupants/owners thereby cheated the original occupants/owners/their legal heirs and also the government authorities.
The Fatorda police had claimed that when the legal heirs of the occupants/owners asked for the information under RTI in the office of Mamlatdar, the 12 files of mutations had gone missing.
The accused persons named in the FIR hail from Davorlim, Sao Jose de Areal, Cuncolim, Grand-Vanelim, Colva, besides Navelim.
Following the development, the district authorities had effected the transfer of the staff and officials in the respective sections of the Mamlatdar office. However, the investigation in the matter did not progress much, and sources are now pinning hopes on the SIT to take the investigations to the logical conclusion and mete out justice to the victims of the land grab case.
