Forest Scam: Sarbat Da Bhala Trust land usurped on 'forged papers'

Tribune News Service

Ropar, June 29

Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee member Daljit Singh Bhinder and his brother Amarinder Singh, accused of duping the Forest Department of crores of rupees by selling land at inflated rates, also allegedly transferred the land of Sarbat Da Bhala Trust in their name on fake documents.

On Monday, the Nurpur Bedi police had registered a case against the two brothers for selling 54 acres and eight marlas allegedly in connivance with officials of the Revenue and Forest departments at Rs 9.9 lakh per acre against the collector rate of Rs 90,000 for compensatory afforestation.

Sarbat Da Bhala Trust president Jassa Singh Sandhu said philanthropist and managing trustee of the trust SP Singh Oberoi intended to set up a welfare project for cancer patients at Nurpur Bedi for which the trust had bought 48 acres at Karura village.

Sandhu said recently he came to know that the land of the trust had been transferred in the name of someone else. When he checked the documents with the Revenue Department, it was found that Bhinder had exchanged a piece of land located at some unidentified location with nearly 24 acres owned by the trust in his name on forged documents, Sandhu alleged. This land of the trust was further sold by the accused to the Forest Department, he said.

A complaint was lodged with the Ropar police on June 20, said Sandhu. Ropar SSP Sandeep Garg said the police were investigating the role of officials.

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