Nagpur police invoke MCOCA against 18 accused in land grab case

Nagpur: Police have invoked the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against 18 persons accused in a case of fraudulent sale of a woman's land plot in Nagpur, officials said on Thursday.

The 63-year-old woman, resident of Navjeevan Colony in Gajanan Nagar, filed a complaint on November 6, 2023, after she found that her 3,000 square feet plot in Mouza Nara area had been fraudulently sold to one Imam Khan Abdul Rahim Khan for Rs 5 lakh using fake documents, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone II) Rahul Madne said.

During the investigation, it was found that the accused had prepared counterfeit documents, including fake Aadhaar and PAN cards, and sale deed, he said.

Khan had connections with a registrar office employee, who allegedly facilitated the extraction of original land files and enabled the creation of fake documents by the accused persons, the official said.

During searches at the residences and of vehicles of the accused, the police recovered land registries, fake identification cards, original land papers, fake non-agriculture (NA) order papers, counterfeit currency, fake stamp papers and tickets, he said.

The police also found evidence indicating the involvement of the accused and conspiracy in multiple land-related crimes, he said The accused have a history of organised criminal activities which resulted in the decision to invoke the MCOCA against them, the police official said.

As of now, five of the accused are in custody, while others have secured bail, he said.

The police are actively pursuing for the cancellation of bail of those released and have issued notices to the arrested accused.

During a search of a high-end car of Khan, the police recovered 12 fake currency notes of Rs 500 denomination, the official said.