Former Ayurvedic doctor arrested in multiple land fraud cases in Kashmir

Srinagar: An 80-year-old former Ayurvedic doctor has been arrested in Kashmir in connection with multiple alleged land fraud cases, including deals involving properties belonging to Kashmiri migrant families. He has been remanded to judicial custody. 

According to reports citing the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Crime Branch, the accused was arrested following an extended search and is currently lodged in Srinagar Central Jail. Investigators alleged that he used multiple identities to pose as property owners or their authorised representatives to carry out fraudulent land transactions.

One of the complaints was filed in November last year by a South Kashmir resident who alleged being duped in a deal worth Rs 93 lakh. The agreement covered five kanals of land in Drusoo, Pulwama, and 300 poplar trees in Bijbehara. The buyer later discovered that the seller had no ownership rights over the property.

Investigators found that the Drusoo land belonged to a Kashmiri Pandit migrant, while the accused allegedly presented himself as the owner's attorney. In the Bijbehara transaction, he allegedly claimed to own the property himself. An FIR in the case was registered on April 1, Kashmir Age reported. 

The probe has also linked the accused to other complaints involving alleged advance payments of Rs 9.17 lakh for property in Goshabugh, Pattan, and Rs 47 lakh for land in Gulab Bagh Pandach.

Investigators further alleged that the same plot of land in Humhama was promised to two separate buyers, who collectively paid Rs 1 crore. The investigation has identified at least four additional cases dating from 2017 to 2026.

The cases are being investigated by the Crime Branch's Economic Offences Wing.