MALDA, Oct. 26: The district land and land reforms department has detected a land scam in the Malda district collector's premises and informed the departmental principal secretary seeking assistance to deal with the land-related irregularity.
The Malda district land and land reforms officer (DL&LRO) has already lodged an FIR with the English Bazaar police station on 23 October, against six members of a reputed zaminder family on charges of forgery.
Investigation revealed that the government had given a plot of 16 decimal lands to one late Ramprasanna Roy and his wife Minoti Roy in 1957-58 on the basis of long-term lease settlement for 30 years.
“With the term having ended in 1987-88, the heir of Ramprasanna Roy did not take any initiative to renew the long-term settlement of the government's land from the Board of Revenue department. Yet in clear defiance of the settlement rules, the family sublet a building constructed on the vest land to a bank, claiming themselves as owner of the land by submitting false papers," said Mr A Biswas, DL & LRO.
The Malda district magistrate and collector, Mr CR Das, has issued an order to the higher officials of the nationalised bank concerned to stop payment of rent to any person and informed him that it was government land.
“It is a unique land scam. But none detected it in the last few decades. The credit for its recent detection should entirely go to the land reforms department. The inquiry has been going on in full swing,” said Mr Das.
The nationalised bank, the main branch in the town, has been functioning here for a few decades on a rental basis. It may be noted that such leasehold land cannot be sublet or subleased in accordance with the prevailing laws. The bank authority has stopped rent payment with the irregularity having come to light.
The land reforms officials have detected the fraudulent means having been employed by the family to strengthen its legal position vis-a-vis the land in the agreement signed on 6 August 2007 between the bank authorities and six members of the family (for the payment of Rs 52,000 per month as rent). n SNS
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