In a major operation against land fraud and corruption, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) launched raids across Maharashtra in connection with a multi-crore land grab case involving reserved forest land once owned by the Nizam of Hyderabad.
According to ED officials, the illegal land deal revolves around fraudulent transfers of government-reserved private forest land, with compensation worth ₹52 crore allegedly claimed through manipulation of documents and land records.
Raids were carried out at JM Mhatre Infrastructure Pvt Ltd’s offices and other linked premises in Panvel and Dadar, as part of an ongoing probe into how land parcels earmarked under the Maharashtra Private Forests (Acquisition) Act, 1975 were illegally sold and transferred.
Officials revealed that in 1962, the forest land—originally under the Nizam’s ownership—was illegally transferred to Sayyed Mohammad Abdul Hamid Qadri using forged documents. Qadri subsequently sold the land to JM Mhatre, despite it having been classified as government-acquired forest land in 1975.
In 2005, Qadri and Mhatre allegedly colluded with revenue officials to tamper land records through duplicate mutation entries, making it appear that the land legally belonged to them.
The matter escalated when the land was fraudulently transferred to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), and both Qadri and Mhatre reportedly received compensation from NHAI — ₹42.4 crore for 1.86 hectares by Mhatre and ₹9.69 crore for 0.4225 hectares by Qadri.
The ED’s case is based on an FIR filed by the Range Forest Officer, Uran (Alibag Division), at Panvel Police Station on September 5, 2023. The central agency later registered an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) to begin its investigation.
Raids continued through late Tuesday evening as ED officials searched for incriminating documents, bank transactions, and property details to track the proceeds of the crime and identify all individuals involved in the scam.
This case highlights Maharashtra's proactive stance in safeguarding public and environmental assets and cracking down on forged property claims and land scams.
