Hyderabad: Rachakonda police on Tuesday busted a three-decade-old multi-crore land racket, which targeted police personnel on the pretext of providing land at low cost with loan facility, by arresting four persons and recovering original land documents estimated to be around Rs 15 crore in the market.
The gang cheated over 200 policemen. The suspects were identified as Hosur Raghavendra, a retired bank employee; B. Sailu Yadava Rao, a railway employee; K. Shyam, a businessman; and two imposters D. Krishna and J. Bikshapathi.
Rachakonda commissioner Mahesh Bhagawat said Raghavendra, who retired as a clerk in SBH, approached police personnel at Central Armed Reserve Headquarters in Amberpet and AR headquarters in Ranga Reddy district in 1987 and lured them to buy 200 sq yard land each for about Rs 6,000. He assured them loans also from Syndicate bank.
Later by colluding with the bank staff, he made them avail loans for household articles and invest that for land in Koheda village, which he took possession of from one Bal Reddy without making an agreement.
When the scam broke out, the Central Bureau of Investigation registered a case and arrested Raghavendra Rao, Pai, then bank manager; and employee Narayana Murthy.
Case filed by CBI helped accused to cheat many
A CBI case against Raghavender Rao, believed to be the kingpin in the three-decade-old multi-crore land racket, and his associate has become an advantage to the accused.
Due to the case, many plot owners feared to claim land documents, due to which he got Additional General Power of Attorney done in his name by creating forged documents and imposters and later sold the plots. Police has started searching original land owners.
Police said many policemen fell in Raghavender’s trap and availed of loans, but after knowing about the CBI case, they lay low fearing job loss and even after knowing about acquittal of the case, they did not approach Raghavender to claim their property documents.
Now after unearthing the scam, police say a major task was ahead of them to identify the original land owners. The original landowners can pay the land rate as per the previous rate and claim their lands through court.
