Now, a Rs 300-crore scam in illegal e-khatas in B'luru North

Now, a Rs 300-crore scam in illegal e-khatas in B'luru North

The illegal issuance of e-khatas for properties and their subsequent cancellation have become a money-spinner in five gram panchayats in Bengaluru North taluk. Thousands of properties were registered, but their khata documents cancelled later, leaving gullible buyers high and dry. As many as 6,510 such cases have been found in Bengaluru North taluk alone, where property prices are high.

The illegal transactions run into at least Rs 300 crore, and this has been going on for the last few years, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister H K Patil told reporters on Thursday.

The modus operandi is simple. Form 9 documents (khata extract) are issued for sites developed illegally in private layouts. Officials manipulate the e-swathu software for this purpose. Immediately after the properties are sold by registering the sale deeds, the gram panchayat cancels Form 9 and instead issues Form 11B (demand extract issued to illegal properties or ‘B’ khata properties). Form 9 is issued only if properties are developed legally by obtaining the necessary permissions, Patil said.

Enquiry
An enquiry has revealed that records have been created only to allow illegality. The purchase of sites does not become legal despite possessing records. The scam could run into Rs 300-400 crore going by the guidance value. The minister said the government had suspended 15 people, including the Bengaluru North taluk panchayat executive officer S R Babu, the presidents and secretaries of five gram panchayats.

Patil said land developers, sub-registrars, panchayat presidents, panchayat development officers (PDOs) and secretaries had colluded to defraud property buyers. He said criminal action would be taken against all those involved in the scam.

Committee formed
Following a complaint about irregularities in issuance of e-khatas, the government formed a committee headed by retired IAS office R B Agawane. The committee has submitted a report which reportedly names those involved in the scam. The minister said another committee headed by retired IAS officer Gopalakrishna Gowda had been set up to suggest measures to give relief to owners of 6,510 sites. The aggrieved can file complaints before the committee. The government would go by the committee’s recommendations, he added.