From threat to forgery, land-mafia Gwalbanshi had many tricks up his sleeve

NAGPUR: The downfall of alleged

land mafia Dilip Gwalbanshi

with police tightening the noose around him, his kin and other accomplices every day have brought back smiles on several people whose dream to own a home was shattered even after investing earnings of lifetime.

Whether it was former

Nagpur station manager Tarun Bose

or Kalmeshwar-based 60-year-old

widow Rukma Vaidya

, Gwalbanshis had usurped their lands either through threats or forgery. They were left running from pillar to post until cops came in as surprise saviours. The police that had earlier had found no substance in the same complaints were now suddenly slapping repeated cases on the land shark. A sizable chunk among his victim is of those who had neither the money nor muscle power to thwart Gwalbanshi and his clan who ran amok in areas such as Hazaripahad, Gorewada and Borgaon.

Gwalbanshi clan

, especially Dilip, had some basic tricks to usurp properties. They involved direct threat of dire consequences, using force to evict a legal possessor, preparing bogus documents of ownerships to claim titles of the lands, fake mortgage deeds and money-lending documents. He would also rope in support of politicians, financiers and local authorities like police and civic officials for his illegal activities for more than two decades.

Widow

Rukma Vaidya

, who once owned 14 acres at Rithi Pipla in Kalmeshwar, is now compelled to work as labourer in other’s farms as she lost all her lands to Dilip. He colluded with Rukma’s nephew Namdeo to usurp her lands. Rukma had already spared seven acres of land to children of her husband Gajanan’s first wife. She was left with seven acres that she had given to her son Chandrashekhar. Nephew Namdeo wrested three acres from these through bogus documents. Later, Dilip approached Rukma through Namdeo and forcibly transferred two-and-half acres land in their name against a payment of a paltry Rs 75,000.

Rukma had borrowed Rs 10,000 from Dilip who had prepared a mortgage deed on her remaining one-and-half acres. When she tried to return the amount, Dilip had claimed that the plot had been transferred in their names. “I was just told to forget about the land. Can anyone believe that one-and-half acres land can be sold for Rs 10,000,” she said.

Rukma’s only son, Chandrashekhar, unable to bear the tragedy, passed away in 2013. After several years’ struggle a case was registered against Dilip, Namdeo and others at Gittikhadan police station last month as cops started the crackdown.

Former railway station manager Bose too was told to forget about his two plots, purchased in 2010 from Ramesh Jeswani, at Khwaja Garib Nawaz society in Borgaon by Dilip’s kin, now a corporator. After forcibly evicting Bose, Gwalbanshis also put tup their own board which has now been removed after cops’ crackdown. “We are hopeful of getting back our plots as cops have assured us,” said Bose.

Another victim Rajesh Patel had purchased a 1,500 sq feet plot at Netaji Co-operative Society from one Vinod Singh Thakur at Gorewada through monthly instalments of Rs 250 by working as domestic help at a bungalow in Civil Lines. After erecting a tin shade, he was evicted by Dilip stating the plot was now under litigation as it belonged to him. Thakur would turn away Patel, who would visit him by travelling on cycle, from his office stating the litigation was still on. As Patel had nothing but prayers to support him, it was city police’s actions on Gwalbanshis that helped him regain his dream for a home.