CHENNAI: A Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) probe has been sought into allegations of officials registering 117.5 cents of land at a higher rate than the existing market and guideline value.
The land is part of 73 acres earmarked for acquisition for Chennai’s second airport in Parandur. A top registration official told TNIE that action would be taken against officials involved. As per a circular issued by the Inspector General of Registrations and a judgment of the Madras High Court, registration of sale deeds for unapproved and unauthorised layouts is banned across Tamil Nadu.
However, four sale deeds were registered for 49.5 cents of 54.01 acres, 25 cents of 9.05 acres, 21 cents of four acres, and 22 cents of 5.94 acres of land. “While the guideline value is Rs 8.71 lakh per acre, 49.5 cents of land which was part of 54.01 acres was registered by the sub-registrar for Rs 32.40 lakh,” said Jayaram Venkatesan, convenor of anti-graft NGO Arappor Iyakkam.
The transaction may cause a notional loss of Rs 165 crore to the exchequer. An encumbrance certificate (EC) accessed by TNIE found the consideration value for 49.5 cents or 21,600 square feet is Rs 32,40,000. This would inflate the value of one acre of land or 43,560 square feet of land from Rs 8 lakh to Rs 65.45 lakh.
Venkatesan alleged despite opposition from Kancheepuram joint II sub-registrar R Prakash, four sale deeds for a total area of 117.5 cents were registered on the instruction of KV Srinivasan, additional IG of the registration department, on July 29, 2020.
Activist calls for FIR against additional IG
The additional IG had asked Prakash to consider the land as individual plots (thani manai) and fix guideline value, register them and release the sale deeds to the parties immediately. But since Prakash did not oblige, he was transferred and Rajadurai, a new sub-registrar, was appointed in his place to carry out the transaction, he said.
Venkatesan, who has been exposing various irregularities in the registration department, said top officials under whose orders sub-registrars are coerced into committing such offences go unpunished and demanded a First Information Report against the additional IG. Sources said the NGO has brought the issue to the notice of Chief Secretary seeking registration of FIR and cancellation of the sale deeds.