Ludhiana: GLADA property sold using ‘forged’ documents, probe on

A property alloted by GLADA in Phase-3, Dugri was sold using forged documents. Police have registered an FIR under Sections 420, 465, 467, 468, 471 and 120-B of the IPC

A residential property allotted by the Greater Ludhiana Area Development Authority (GLADA) decades ago was allegedly sold through a registered sale deed in 2024 on the basis of forged documents, prompting the police to register an FIR after the authority discovered irregularities in its records.

Allotted in 1998, property’s allotment was cancelled for want of payment in 2002. (HT Photo)

The case, now under investigation at the Sarabha Nagar police station, centres on a house in Phase-3, Dugri Road, which was originally allotted in 1998 to Paramjit Singh. According to GLADA officials, the allotment had long been cancelled after the allottee failed to deposit the required amount within the stipulated time. The allottee later sought relief through an appeal and the deposited amount was refunded by the authority in 2002.

Despite the cancellation and refund, officials say the property resurfaced in official records years later through a chain of documents that are now suspected to be forged.

According to the complaint filed by the estate officer of GLADA, a person allegedly impersonating the original allottee submitted documents to the authority in 2021 seeking execution of a conveyance deed. Based on the permission issued by the authority at the time, the conveyance deed was executed and registered.

Investigators say the development did not stop there. The person posing as the allottee subsequently executed a general power of attorney in favour of a woman identified as Vijay Rani in June 2022. She, in turn, appointed another individual, Jatin Saggar, as special power of attorney in September 2023.

Using this chain of authorisations, permission was eventually obtained from the authority to sell the property. Based on this approval, the house was sold to Harinderpal Singh through a registered sale deed in April 2024, after which an application was submitted to GLADA seeking transfer of ownership in the buyer’s name.

The transaction triggered closer scrutiny within the authority, during which officials allegedly discovered multiple discrepancies in the file related to the property.

According to the complaint, several receipts attached to the file showing deposits worth over ₹4 lakh were found to be fake, as the amounts were never credited to GLADA’s accounts. The possession letter and No Due Certificate linked to the property were also found to carry dispatch numbers that did not match entries in the official dispatch register.

Officials further stated that the file itself showed signs of manipulation. Several note sheets were missing and the numbering on the remaining pages appeared to have been tampered with, raising suspicion that the records had been altered to facilitate the fraudulent transaction.

GLADA officials have alleged that unknown persons attempted to fraudulently grab the authority’s property by creating forged documents and impersonating the original allottee, causing financial loss to the department.

Acting on the complaint forwarded by the GLADA officials, the police registered a case against unidentified persons under Sections 420, 465, 467, 468, 471 and 120-B of the Indian Penal Code for cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy. ASI Rajpal Singh, who is investigating the case, said the case will examine how the forged paperwork managed to pass through the system and culminate in the registration of a sale deed for the property.