Former SP district chief booked under Gangsters Act in land grabbing case

Jhansi: Former Samajwadi Party ( SP) district president Mahesh Kashyap and four of his associates have been booked under the Gangsters Act after a woman doctor from New Delhi lodged a complaint against them alleging land grabbing, intimidation and extortion.

However, Mahesh Kashyap denied all the allegations, claiming that he was being falsely implicated as part of a political conspiracy orchestrated by his opponents.

According to police, complainant Dr Smita Pandey of New Delhi lodged a complaint at Sipri Bazar police station against Mahesh Kashyap, Kalawati, Ramesh Raikwar, Arjun Chakravarty and Prahlad Chakravarty. In her complaint, Dr Pandey alleged that she had purchased two plots in Nayagaon area from Kalawati in 2015. She claimed that when construction work on the plots began later, Mahesh Kashyap and Ramesh Raikwar stopped the work, stating that the land was under litigation.

The complainant further alleged that Mahesh, Ramesh, Arjun and Prahlad threatened her and demanded money. She also accused Mahesh Kashyap of threatening her with a firearm and stealing construction materials worth lakhs of rupees from the site.

The station officer of Sipri Bazar police station said that a case had been registered against all the accused under relevant sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and the matter was under investigation.

Responding to the allegations, Mahesh Kashyap said he had never met the complainant and described the case as fabricated. He alleged that the accusations were politically motivated.

A few months ago, Akhilesh Yadav had visited Mahesh Kashyap’s residence to attend a family wedding.