Uttar Pradesh: CBI searches at 16 locations in Lucknow and Barabanki for fraudulent sale of enemy property

LUCKNOW: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is conducting searches at 16 locations in Lucknow and Barabanki following complaints that assets declared as enemy property in government records were being sold off after fraudulently making changes in documentation.
The teams have got some incriminating documents which are being analysed.
According to CBI, the assistant custodian of enemy properties in the ministry of home affairs, Abhishek Agarwal, had lodged a complaint against three custodians for selling out enemy properties in Lucknow, Barabanki, and Delhi, through an out-of-court settlement. They had waived lease rents without approval of the government and were using forged documents and manipulating all norms, causing a loss of Rs 1.4 crore to the government of India from 2016-2022 on 10 land properties in Lucknow, Barabanki and Sitapur.
A CBI source said that based on the complaint, a preliminary inquiry was conducted and two FIRs lodged by the anti-corruption branch.
The two FIRs have been lodged against the then-officiating custodians of enemy property Samandar Singh Rana and Utpal Chakraborty and then-supervisor custodian Ramesh Chandra Tiwari.
Others named in the FIR are Sunil Kumar Bajpai, Om Prakash Singh, Gyanendra Tiwari, Jainuddin Siddiqui, Umair Sivaz, Bilal Ahmed Diwakar, Rudresh Pandey and Vinay Srivastava.
All have been booked under charges of cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property, fraudulently or dishonestly using genuine documents, criminal conspiracy and corruption.
They are accused of causing huge financial loss to the government by leasing out highly commercial lands at very nominal rates.
“Two properties are in Jaggaur village, one in Ajmatnagar, two in Malihabad and Sitapur, and three others in Barabanki,” said CBI.
The highly fertile 9.48 hectare land in Bhuhera village, Barabanki, was quoted for Rs 2.5 lakh per year on lease but after 10 years given up for Rs 94,900 only, CBI said.