ONGOLE: Amidst the fake land registration scam that has stirred controversy in Prakasam district, authorities suspended three sub-registrars for allegedly being involved in illicit land registrations at Ongole and Yerragondapalem Sub-Registrar offices on Friday.
Following an internal inquiry, higher department officials uncovered the wrongdoing of sub-registrars, Ramana Kumar and Ramakrishna from the Ongole office, as well as Jnana Sundar from the Yerragondapalem office, leading to their suspension. Earlier, senior assistant Krishna Mohan, serving as the in-charge sub-registrar of Ongole Sub-Registrar office, was suspended in connection with various land registration allegations.
Krishna Mohan’s involvement in the Special General Power of Attorney (GPA) registration for a 14-acre plot in Throvagunta raised concerns, as it was registered in the name of Arulraju, the husband of Ongole Municipal Corporation (OMC) Mayor G Sujatha, without valid land papers. The government initiated disciplinary action against him. In parallel, the three sub-registrars faced suspension for their roles in fraudulent registrations of Markapur lands at the Yerragondapalem sub-registrar Office using the government’s ‘Anywhere Registration’ policy.
Regarding the ongoing investigation, a Stamps and Registration department officer emphasised the seriousness of the scam and the commitment to taking stringent action against all individuals involved. Simultaneously, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) appointed by the government is conducting a thorough examination of fake land registration papers. Ardhaveedu Police, acting on SIT information, arrested five revenue officials who, in collaboration with a local leader named Daddanala Krishna Reddy, were involved in issuing fake and duplicate land patta papers and land owners pass books, accepting bribes from farmers in Ardhaveedu and Papineni Palle villages.
Based on the Tahsildar’s complaint, Ardhaveedu S-I Venkateswara Nayak registered cases. Subsequently, the present S-I Naga Malleswara Rao, after investigation, arrested the five-member group, presenting them in court.
15 ryots reported the scam to tahsildar
The scam came to light when 15 farmers discovered that the documents provided by the fraudulent group were fake and duplicate. They reported the issue to the Ardhaveedu Mandal Revenue Officer (Tahsildar), who identified the responsible persons