E-Paper
Faridkot Royal property dispute: Police give a week’s time to trust to present record
Faridkot Royal property dispute: Punjab Police has started the investigation into a case of fraud registered against 23 members and employees of the trust for forging the will
Faridkot : The Punjab police bureau of investigation (BoI) probing the forging of the will of the last ruler of the erstwhile princely state of Faridkot, Harinder Singh Brar, on Monday gave a week’s time to the Maharawal Khewaji Trust to present records of its functioning.
The BoI has started the investigation into a case of fraud registered against 23 members and employees of the trust for forging the will. Last week, the bureau had issued a notice to the members of the trust to appear at the office of the assistant inspector general of police, state crime at Mohali on November 7 in person along with the complete record and a copy of the will prepared on June 1, 1982, by Harinder Singh Brar. The bureau has sought records from 1988, when the trust came into existence after the death of the last ruler, to till now.
Chief executive officer of the trust Jagir Singh Sran appeared before AIG on Monday but did not bring the record. Officials privy to the development said Sran sought more time claiming that the record sought by the bureau is lengthy and they need time to compile it.
An official said on the condition of anonymity that Sran and former chairman and member of the trust Lalit Mohan Gupta were summoned to appear on Monday. “Sran appeared in person but did not bring the record. He sought more time following which he is asked to bring the record after a week. Gupta’s daughter appeared for him and sought more time citing his health issues,” he added.
In August 2020, after the Punjab and Haryana high court ruled that the will of Brar was forged in favour of the Maharwal Khewaji Trust on June 1, 1982, a case was registered against 23 of its members and employees.
A case of fraud was registered on the complaint of Brar’s younger daughter Amrit Kaur against the 23 trust members, including chairman Jai Chand Mehtab, who is also the son of her elder sister, Deepinder Kaur. The erstwhile ruler’s granddaughter and Mehtab’s sister, Nisha D Kher, who is vice-chairperson of the trust, was also named in the FIR.
However, on June 2, 2021, the police approached the court and sought cancellation of the FIR, which was challenged by Amrit Kaur. In August, putting an end to the 30-year-long fight for inheriting the royal riches of Faridkot’s last ruler, the Supreme Court upheld the HC’s order awarding the majority share in the ₹20,000-crore property to his daughters –Amrit Kaur and Deepinder Kaur – and dissolved the Maharawal Khewaji Trust, which had been looking after the properties.
Following SC judgement, as district court at Faridkot has refused to accept the cancellation report and directed police to make further investigation into the case.
BoI sent a list of 39 items of record required for investigation. The list included Tosha Khana register, Asla Khana register, expenditure register, income register regarding all income of trust annually- estate wise, property wise, rent and FDR income- from 1988 to till now and all the statements of bank accounts operated by the trust since 1988. Apart from this the bureau has sought record of income from sale of fruits and crops, record of crop sowing, record of expenditure repair, renovation and maintenance of royal properties.
