J&K Crime Branch files chargesheet against five in migrant property fraud case

Srinagar: The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) Kashmir of J&K Crime Branch said on Thursday that it has filed the chargesheet in the court in the Rs one crore migrant property fraud case.

A Crime Branch statement said that the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) Kashmir has filed a chargesheet against five persons for allegedly cheating a complainant of over Rs 1 crore in a case of fraudulent sale of migrant property in north Kashmir's Baramulla district.

The chargesheet was filed before the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Sopore, in connection with FIR No. 34/2017, registered under various sections of the Ranbir Penal Code (RPC) relating to cheating, impersonation, forgery, use of forged documents and criminal conspiracy, they said.

The case pertains to the alleged fraudulent sale of 14 kanals and three marlas of land at Wussan, Goshbugh Pattan, owned by Jawahar Lal Bhat, the officials said. According to the investigation, the complainant paid more than Rs 1 crore for the land, but possession was neither handed over nor was the money refunded.

The investigation revealed that the accused allegedly conspired to cheat the complainant through impersonation, fabrication of identity documents and misuse of a purported power of attorney, they said.

The accused have been identified as Brij Nath, a resident of Amit Nagar, Muthi, Jammu; Ghulam Mohi-Ud-Din Dar of Samson, Budgam; Ghulam Mohammad Sheikh of Sachen Banet, Beerwah, Budgam; Zahoor Ahmed Dar of Margipora, Pattan; and Reyaz Ahmad Rather of Margipora, Pattan, Baramulla. Two of the accused, Brij Nath, who allegedly used several aliases, and Ghulam Mohi-Ud-Din Dar, were arrested in late September. While Dar has secured bail, Brij Nath remains lodged in Central Jail, the officials said.

Other cases against the two accused are also under investigation, they added. The EOW had earlier filed a chargesheet in August 2023 in another case, FIR No. 27/2021, against Brij Nath and Ghulam Mohammad Sheikh.

The latest chargesheet is the second filed against both accused, according to the Crime Branch. The SSP, EOW Kashmir, has advised the public to verify land ownership records and property documents thoroughly before entering into transactions to avoid fraud and financial losses.

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