Srinagar: High Court today appreciated the action of cancellation of fake and fraudulent gift deeds manipulated by some senior government officers at Pahalgam tourist resort.
“The respondents”, the bench observed “have acted upon the directions of the court and have cancelled the mutation entries reported to have been manipulated on the basis of the fake oral gifts which allegedly came into existence due to the connivance of Mir Naseem the then Chief Town Planner Kashmir”.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Pankaj Mithal and Vinod Chatterji Koul was informed that appropriate action in accordance with law has been taken for the cancellation of the fake and fraudulent gift deeds manipulated by the officers involved with the earlier Master Plan of Pahalgam.
The mutation entries in that regard have been reversed, informed the additional advocate general of J&K.
The government in November 2020 had constituted a 12-member committee headed by Principal Secretary Revenue to examine loss caused to the public exchequer by the continuous occupation of the government land by the erstwhile “fraudulent” lessees and licensees.
Its report stated that the role of the then Chief Town Planner, Kashmir Mir Naseem Ahmad appeared to be a dubious one.
In 1991, Mir had “dishonestly and fraudulently” acquired about 29 kanals and 13 marlas of land in planning Sub-zone A-14 through oral gifts shown to have been made by donors to his close/trusted supporting employees and his associates, reads the report.
After fraudulently acquiring the land in the name of “proxy owners”, a plan was conceived by Mir to arbitrarily change the land use to induce sharp increase in the value of land in Sub-zone A-14 for personal gain, the investigation has revealed.
In a compliance report of June this year it has been stated that a committee headed by the Assistant Commissioner (Rev.), Anantnag, was constituted to scrutinize the sanctity of the mutation order No.1503 of estate Laripora, Tehsil Pahalgam.
The report reveals that land measuring 43 kanals 18 marlas was transferred by oral gift and on that basis the above mutation entry was carried out in gross violation of sub-section 2(c) of Section 5 of the Jammu & Kashmir Alienation of Land Act, 1995, now repealed.
In addition to it, land of survey no. 825 measuring 9 kanals 6 marlas, survey no. 827 measuring 3 kanals 10 marlas and survey no. 836 measuring 11 kanals 11 marlas was also shown to have been transferred to the donors by virtue of the aforesaid mutation.
The said land on spot is under physical possession of some third party other than the donors, said the report.
Accordingly, as per the directions of the court, the mutation entry 1503 of estate Laripora, Tehsil Pahalgam, has been quashed vide order no.07 of 2021 dated 28.06.2021.
On a separate petition seeking an end to illegal constructions on agricultural land along the Bijbehara Phalgam road, the High Court directed the deputy commissioner (DC) Anantnag to take appropriate action and ensure that no illegal constructions are allowed or take place within his jurisdiction.
The division bench while disposing off an application by a civil society group directed the DC “to take appropriate action ensuring that no illegal constructions are allowed or take place within his jurisdiction”.
The bench further directed that if any unauthorized constructions have been raised the DC should take effective steps for their removal.
He should also submit a report clearly stating the steps taken by him for stopping all illegal constructions and for the removal of unauthorized constructions already raised, directed the bench.
The petitioner sought appropriate directions restraining all illegal constructions in certain remote areas and villages alongside the Bijbehara-Pahalgam road.
