BHIWANDI The Shanti Nagar Police in Bhiwandi have booked 18 persons including a Nayab Tehsildar and his female friend, and arrested 17 of them for allegedly creating fake farmers to get compensation in the Mumbai Vadodra Expressway project that passes through a few villages in Bhiwandi. The Nayab Tehsildar is absconding.
The group got a compensation of ₹11.66Cr without finding the real owners of the affected land in Nandithane village.
According to police officials, the incident occurred in September 2021. In a complaint given by a clerk of Bhiwandi Tehsil office, Sanjay Gadhve, the matter of a survey number belonging to Narayan Bhoir, who has eight survey numbers on his name with a total of 17,824sqm land situated at Nandithane village of Bhiwandi, came to light.
Bhoir died a few years ago. Therefore, his claim was supposed to be given to nine of his heirs as per government records. Meanwhile, in September, nine accused including women, who claimed to be his family members, approached the Tehsil office with heir certificates to claim the compensation amount of the project affected land.
An officer from Shanti Nagar police station said, “After following up with all legal procedures, the amount was transferred to the heirs’ bank account, taking their bank details. In April 2022, the real heirs of the Bhoir reached the Thane Tehshil officer and laid their claim on the same survey number. They were told that they had already given the claim and nothing is pending now. The heirs Vinit Bhoir, Amol Bhoir and Haresh Bhoir, then provided their documents and this cheating has come into light.”
Shanti Nagar police officials started investigation in the matter, when it was revealed that Nayab Tehshildar, Vithhal Gosawi, with the help of his female friend, Manisha Pagare, who works as an agent, allegedly planned all these fake heirs, helped them get fake documents of the heirs and land on their name. A lawyer, Pravin Chaudhary, also allegedly helped these two.
Shanti Nagar police station senior police inspector, S Raut, said, “A cheating case has been registered and 17 people have been arrested so far in the matter. Nayab Tehsildar is still absconding. The investigation is still going on and didn’t reveal any details in the matter.”
The Vadodara-Mumbai Expressway is a proposed eight-lane Expressway. Maharashtra, Gujarat and the Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli are all part of the Mumbai Vadodara Expressway project.