Questions are being raised in various quarters about the protest undertaken by the association of lekhpals (revenue officers) as the association is demanding that the Special Task Force (STF) should refrain from investigating the land deals.
The association of lekhpal is on path of agitation from from last few days. To support its demand the association is putting forward a plea that the SIT is not aware about the land revenue laws which appear flimsy when one come across large number of dubious land deals in the State.
It is worth mentioning here that the SIT has undertaken investigation of more than 1,500 land deals in state capital alone and provided some sort of succor to the people affected by dubious land deals. It is common knowledge that in any land related scam and dubious deals the involvement of revenue officials is a foregone conclusion as without their assistance such deals are almost impossible.
The lekhpals are perturbed by the fact that SIT in many instances has made the local lekhpal as co accused or conspirator in the fraudulent deals.
Meanwhile the state in charge of SIT, Sanjay Gunjyal said that the drive against the fraudulent and dubious land deals would continue. He said that SIT is open for reinvestigation where it becomes apparent that some facts have been left out in the investigation hitherto done but it is not possible that the work of lekhpals could not be
investigated.
The public opinion on the issue is also against the lekhpals. “There have been incidences when the land grabbers in collusion with revenue officials have shown actual land owner as dead and did mutation of land records when the person is still alive. There is a nefarious nexus between lekhpals and the land mafia and everyone is knowledge of the fact. It is apparent that the lekhpals have become restive after the campaign of the SIT. In all probably the lekhpals are prompted by their mafia friends to undertake protest and Dharna. The government should understand this nexus and should not accept this unjustified demand of the association of lekhpals,’’ said a resident of Sahastradhra road.