Man who helped builder usurp ₹50-cr land held

Shaukat Sayyed Ghauri, 50, an Andheri (West) resident, was arrested on Thursday night. Lakdawala, the main accused, was arrested on April 12 from Ahmedabad airport while he was allegedly trying to escape to London.

Economic Offences Wing (EOW) officials have arrested an agent who allegedly helped builder and film financier Yusuf Lakdawala and played a key role in the conspiracy to usurp a plot of land worth ₹50 crore, belonging to an erstwhile Hyderabad Nawab, in Khandala.

Lakdawala, 74, along with his associate, Mohan R Nair and others allegedly conspired and usurped 4.38 acres of land in Khandala. (Representative Image)

Shaukat Sayyed Ghauri, 50, an Andheri (West) resident, was arrested on Thursday night. Lakdawala, the main accused, was arrested on April 12 from Ahmedabad airport while he was allegedly trying to escape to London.

Lakdawala, 74, along with his associate, Mohan R Nair and others allegedly conspired and usurped 4.38 acres of land in Khandala. According to an EOW officer, this property belongs to the family of a Hyderabad Nawab, Himayat Nawaz Jung Bahadur. To usurp the land, Lakdawala allegedly forged agreement papers, dating back to 1949, between his late father, Mohammad Ahmed Lakdawala and the late Nawab, said an EOW officer.

Lakdawala allegedly obtained an affidavit and a deed of confirmation on the basis of these fake documents. The builder used the registration number of the original document, recorded with the Mumbai registrar’s office.

“Ghauri, who is into buying and selling land, had shown the said disputed land to Lakdawala. He was the one who introduced Lakdawala to other accused who helped him in the crime. To usurp the land Lakdawala prepared bogus documents and on that basis signed a number of deeds of rectification. Despite knowing about the authenticity of the documents, Ghauri signed on the deed as witness,” an officer said.

Officers said they had learnt that Ghauri received ₹ 75 lakh from Lakdawala for helping him. However, Ghauri’s lawyer defended him in court saying he is neither the beneficiary nor author of any of the forged documents. He is instead a witness in the case, his lawyer said.