11 revenue dept employees, 12 others booked for cheating

As many as 23 people, including 11 Revenue department employees, have been booked for allegedly facilitating multiple purchase deal of government lands in the district by means of fraudulence, causing a loss of nearly Rs 3.85 crore to the exchequer during 2015-16, Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) officials said.
Th 11 persons, then posted at the revenue office in Nandgaon here, and 13 private persons were booked yesterday on basis of a complaint lodged by ACB, Nashik unit with Nandgaon police, an official release issued by the ACB here said.
The ACB had carried out an investigation into the allegations based on an application, highlighting the irregularities, filed by a one Jairam Dalvi of village Vinchur Dalvi against the 23 accused.

According to the ACB, sub-divisional officer Vasanti Mali, now posted at Yeola, then Nandgaon tehsildar Sudam Mahajan, then sub-registrar D D Pandit, and eight others of the department had illegally made changes in the purchase/sell deed, while the private persons got fake affidavit made to purchase the government lands in Nandgaon.
The incident came to light in July, 2015 after the ACB started investigation, following which tehsildar Mahajan was suspended.
A case has been lodged under relevant sections of Prevention of Corruption Act-1988 and IPC sections 167 (public servant framing an incorrect document with intent to cause injury), 109 (punishment of abetment if the act abetted is committed in consequence and where no express provision is made for its punishment), 420 (cheating) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy).

No arrests have been made so far.
Apart from Mahajan, Mali and Pandit, the other accused are - Praniti Dandile, Ashok Shilavat, S K Aher, D A Kasture, V P Sonawane, V B Bodke, Jayesh Maldude, V P Gaikwad of the revenue department.
The others were identified as - Shivaji Sanap, Prashant Sanap, Jayantibhai Patel, Bhavin Patel, Maniben Patel, Praveen Patel, Arjun Makani, Shivlal Makani, Ranjan Makani, Vinod Makani, Bharati Shah, Popat patel, the release said.