Berhampur: In a major case of land fraud, miscreants have sold off prime residential plots at Gandhinagar in this city worth over Rs 10 crore by showing the deceased owners as living without the knowledge of their legal heirs, a report said. Police investigating the case have arrested a woman named Bharati Patra, the mastermind of the racket. She is lodged in Berhampur Circle Jail after her arrest as police obtained a one-day remand, Monday.
Bharati was arrested after Kamalendu Patra, a resident of Gandhi Nagar lodged a complaint at the Town police station, January 22. Kamalendu had alleged that his father Lakshmikanta Patra had purchased a plot at Gandhinagar 27-years back. The sale deed was with Kamalendu but he found the patta (Record of Rights) in another person’s name when he checked it online. Police registered a case and had earlier arrested two persons.
Bharati allegedly committed the fraud with the help of her kin Jayanti Jena and her domestic help N Chiranjeevi Rao alias Srinu. They were absconding after the land deal was busted till police arrested them from Pune.
Town police had applied for her remand in the court of sub-divisional judicial magistrate (SDJM) Jeetendriya Panigrahi who heard the plea and allowed Bharati to be taken on remand. Police have conducted a marathon interrogation with Bharati to find out the roots behind the shoddy land deals.
Bharati with the help of her accomplices have allegedly sold over 20 acre of land worth Rs 10 crore to various persons, police found during interrogating the mastermind. Police also said that they have got vital clues regarding the fraud after interrogating Jayanti, who is a resident of Bijipur Canal Sahi. She is also lodged in Berhampur Circle Jail.
