The High Court on Friday directed Joseph Chacko, who is accused of swindling over Rs 500 crore from NRIs by promising them of residential sites in Bengaluru, to either provide alternative sites or reimburse the amount in 'concrete terms'.
Justice A V Chandrashekhara passed an order pertaining to 52 NRIs who have approached the court accusing Chacko of cheating them by promising residential sites in the City.
The bench directed Chacko to provide alternative sites, which are free from litigation and have full title deeds to make an honest effort to aid the settlement. The bench directed him to provide the details in the next hearing on April 11, 2016.
Chacko, an NRI, allegedly sold many sites under bogus khatas from 1994 onwards. He is believed to have swindled an estimated Rs 500 crore by forming more than 25 layouts in and around KR Puram. He has taken general power of attorney (GPA) from land owners and formed illegal layouts in greenbelt areas without taking any statutory permission, and sale deeds were issued under bogus house list khata numbers. In Sy No 59 of Kyalasanhahalli village he formed Elysium Township and Athina Township came up in Sy No 14 of Doddagubbi village and Sy No 9 of Bilishivalay village.
The NRIs later learnt that the said layouts were not approved by the government and Chacko had conned them. There have been more than 200 complaints registered against Chacko in various police stations in the City and the CID has chargesheeted him in about 85 cases. The bench has adjourned the next hearing till April 11, 2016.
DH News Service