KADAPA: A major land scam involving a data entry operator has come to light at the Proddatur tahsildar’s office in Kadapa district, much to the surprise of revenue officials.
Naresh, working as a data entry operator in the tahsildar’s office, is accused of creating forged land documents for already assigned properties and collecting lakhs of rupees from unsuspecting victims, officials said on Monday.
The matter came to light after videos showing Naresh accepting gold biscuits and cash from several individuals went viral on social media. This led to an internal inquiry.
According to sources, Naresh forged the signatures of former tahsildar Nazir Ahmed, who had served in the same office, and used them to prepare fake possession documents. Using these forged signatures, he reportedly duped several people by promising ownership rights over disputed or government lands.
The scam surfaced prominently when attempts were made to take possession of a high-value land parcel worth over `20 crore in Srinivasa Nagar near Proddatur. Individuals who claimed ownership based on the fake documents tried to take control of the land, but revenue authorities intervened and prevented the illegal occupation.
Subsequently, complaints were lodged with the current tahsildar, who referred the issue to the district collector. Officials said the accused was well-versed in manipulating passbooks and carrying out illegal mutations in land records.
Following the emergence of the viral videos and preliminary findings, the district collector ordered strict action. Naresh has been dismissed from service with immediate effect.
The tahsildar’s office staff said that a formal complaint would be lodged with the police. The authorities are also verifying land records to identify the extent of the fraud and prevent further illegal transactions.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: deccanchronicle.com
