Surat: In a shocking land fraud case, four individuals, including Swami Hariprasad of the Swaminarayan sect, have allegedly conspired to unlawfully acquire a property belonging to an 83-year-old resident of Surat. The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the city police has arrested two land brokers in connection with the case.

According to the FIR, Mahesh Ishwarlal Desai, a resident of Mahadev Phaliya, Katargam, was misled by the accused, who convinced him that an affidavit needed to be executed to settle a matter related to his land at Abrama. Unbeknownst to him, a deed for his Mota Varachha property (Block No. 44-8) was prepared and signed under false pretenses. While the deed mentioned a payment of Rs 1.21 crore, no actual money was exchanged.

Investigations revealed that Ronak Pragji Chotlia (Sanidhya Villa Complex, Antroli, Palsana), Vadhasiya Lalji Madhubhai (Santoshi Nagar, Varachha), Vijay Darbar (Parvatgam), and Swami Harinandan, also known as Hariprasad, allegedly colluded to fabricate sale vouchers for the Abrama land. They reportedly obtained Maheshbhai’s signature on these documents and falsely claimed to have cleared the title of his Mota Varachha property, which is valued at approximately Rs 33 crore.

Following the complaint, police have booked the four accused under Sections 420, 465, 467, 468, 471, 120B, and 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Investigations are ongoing to determine the extent of each individual’s involvement in the alleged conspiracy.

Meanwhile, the EOW has arrested two land brokers in connection with the case: Vijay Batuk Parmar (48) of Shantavan Excella, Puna Patiya, Surendranagar, and Ronak Pragji Chotlia (31) of Sanidhya Villa Complex, Antroli, Palsana. DeshGujarat