MAPUSA: While it is apparent that most criminal conspiracies in Goa require and enjoy support from government officials, the SIT investigating the land grab nexus also managed to nab a key player from the taluka administration, a government gazetted officer who allegedly helped the culprits amass their ill-gotten wealth of property by fast-tracking the forged documents and completing the mutation process within a few weeks.
An alleged accomplice to the land-grabbing family, former Bardez Mamlatdar Rahul Desai came under the Mapusa Police’s scanner after Anjuna resident and land grab victim Esperanca Oliveira named him in her complaint, after the group colluded to snatch her property admeasuring 15,400 sq m in the pricey coastal village.
Herald’s reports had explained how the procedures of mutations were manipulated by the Bardez Mamlatdar since most of the files of forged documents were moved during the pandemic period, but mutated in the months of January to March 2022.
Mutation processes fast-tracked
Strangely, the mutation processes for the grabbed properties, which usually take months, or even years to finish, were “fast-tracked” and completed within a period of a month or two, clearly indicating that government officials, including personnel from the departments of revenue, archives and police, were hand-in-glove with the criminals.
In one such case, an application for mutation was filed on March 7, 2022 and by April 11, the mutation was granted. In a period of 34 days, notices were served, allowed for publication and granted mutation status, despite the fact that there were no NOCs or addresses mentioned on the fraudulent application. This was an amazing feat, as it takes the common man a minimum of a year to complete a mutation procedure, especially if the necessary NOCs are not granted.
