In a major breakthrough in the high-profile 272 plots scam involving the Udaipur Municipal Corporation, the Special Operations Group (SOG) arrested a sixth accused, Deepak Singh Chauhan, late on Tuesday night. Chauhan is allegedly responsible for forging documents to fraudulently secure a lease deed for a municipal plot in Hiran Magri, Udaipur.
The Udaipur Municipal Corporation had filed a formal complaint in 2022, highlighting irregularities in the transfer of plot number 708 in Sector-3, Hiran Magri, from the Urban Improvement Trust (UIT) to the corporation. According to ASP Swati Sharma of the SOG, Chauhan used forged allocation letters, possession papers, and office notations to acquire a lease deed in the name of Bharat Kumar Bhatt from Baghpura.
Chauhan’s arrest follows the apprehension of five other accused individuals, including Rakesh Solanki, Kishanlal, Rajendra Dhakad, and Rajdeep Valmiki. The SOG plans to send handwriting samples of the suspects for forensic analysis as part of the ongoing investigation.
This scam, which dates back to 2012, surfaced when the UIT transferred several colonies to the Udaipur Municipal Corporation, with many of the plots being left vacant, particularly corner plots. Due to poor oversight, some plots were illegally occupied, while others had fraudulent documents created to transfer ownership.
Several of these plots were reportedly sold by intermediaries. The issue came to light in 2022 when Congress Councilor Ajay Porwal raised the matter, prompting an investigation that led to the cancellation of 48 leases by the corporation.
The scale of the fraud has raised significant political concern, with former Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria and MLA Tarachand Jain estimating the total value of the scam to be around Rs500 crore.
The SOG is intensifying its investigation to uncover all individuals involved in this large-scale land fraud, with the authorities committed to holding everyone accountable for their actions.