INDORE: Authorities in Madhya Pradesh's Indore district on Tuesday razed illegal structures built by an associate of self-styled godman Namdeo Das Tyagi on 15,000 sq ft area here, a senior official said.
Tyagi, popularly known as Computer Baba, was earlier arrested in preventive action when the administration was removing encroachment from a government land in Jamburdi Hapsi village near Indore on November 8.
"When we demolished Tyagi's illegal ashram in Jamboori Hapsi, we seized an SUV from there, and although Computer Baba was using the vehicle, it was registered in the name of Ramesh Tomar," additional district magistrate (ADM) Ajaydev Sharma said.
There are 19 cases related to criminal conspiracy, cheating, extortion, manhandling, among others registered against Tomar, he said.
"During our probe, we found that Tomar had built a few houses in Musakhedi area without the Indore Municipal Corporation's (IMC) permission," the official said, adding that these were demolished in the presence of police.
In the same area, he had also leased out a plot to three telecom companies for setting up mobile towers, which are also being removed, Sharma said.
Meanwhile, IMC building inspector Nagendra Singh Bhadoria said illegal constructions undertaken by Tomar are spread over 15,000 sq ft area and included four permanent structures and two vacant plots.
He had also illegally occupied a land earmarked for a park, which was also taken over by the administration, it was stated.
Tyagi (54), who was once accorded the status of minister of state by the both BJP and the Congress governments, was arrested under section 151 of the CRPC as a precautionary measure during the demolition at his ashram.
The godman was later booked in two cases at Aerodrome police station for allegedly abusing, manhandling and attacking two persons, one of them a panchayat secretary, on separate occasions.