Gujarat acts tough against land mafia
The Hindu
State takes steps after rising instances of land grab
With skyrocketing land prices, instances of land grab are on the rise in Gujarat, prompting the State authorities to act tough on mafias that grab government or private land using forged documents and false records.
After the Gujarat Land Grabbing (Prohibition) Act was enacted in 2020, the State administration has lodged 586 FIRs, under which a total of 2,256 individuals have been booked.
The authorities have filed the charge-sheet in 336 cases out of 586 FIRs that have been lodged.
In the Assembly, Gujarat Revenue Minister Rajendra Trivedi stated that after the law was passed, a total of 12,342 complaints related to land grab over 1,014 ha were received. After scrutiny by the revenue and police officials, 818 complaints were found to be genuine and recommended for further action.
According to Mr. Trivedi, so far land worth ₹1,075 crore had been freed from the mafia.
Similarly, 499 complaints were received on land grab at government land parcels over 695 ha. After detailed scrutiny, 121 complaints were recommended for prosecution and, accordingly, 99 FIRs were lodged against 478 individuals.
The Gujarat Land Grabbing (Prohibition) Act was apparently brought in because there were, according to the State’s officials, several reports of land mafia grabbing farmers’ land in several places and particularly in the vicinity of the main cities, where realty prices have seen a massive jump as cities are expanding.