In a major anti-encroachment action, the Sambhal district administration in Uttar Pradesh has reclaimed 38 bighas of gram sabha land valued at approximately ₹101 crore in Takht Gusai on Moradabad Road and restored it to the village community following an order from the deputy director of consolidation court. The land had allegedly remained under private occupation for nearly six decades.
Confirming it, Sambhal DM Ankit Khandelwal said the administration has erected official signboards there. Notices will now be issued to individuals commercially occupying parts of the property, directing them to vacate the land.
The action followed a site inspection conducted on Sunday by DM Khandelwal and SP Krishan Kumar Bishnoi, who instructed officials to ensure immediate removal of encroachments. The administration had received complaints alleging that government land in Takht Gusai, under Sambhal tehsil, had been under the possession of Saeedul Rahman and his legal heirs for several decades.
Taking immediate cognisance of the complaint, the DM directed officials to file a restoration appeal before the deputy director of consolidation court. The appeal was filed on June 3 and after conducting day-to-day hearings, the court delivered its verdict on June 27, ordering that the land be recorded in the name of the gram sabha.
According to the district administration, a government gazette notification dated August 11, 1954, had declared Mauza Takht Gusai a non-inhabited area. Although its management was entrusted to the Sambhal Nagar Palika Parishad, the land lay outside the municipal limits.
Saeedul Rahman claimed that the then municipality chairman had granted him a lease for the land in 1967. However, the administration found that under the Municipalities Act, 1916, municipal property cannot be transferred without prior approval from the state government, and no such approval was available in this case. Furthermore, the Act permits leases for a maximum period of one year. Consequently, the alleged lease deed dated July 12, 1967, was declared legally invalid.
The DM said a writ petition titled Municipal Council Sambhal vs Saeedul Rahman Khan has been pending before the Allahabad high court since 2008. He said the then executive officer, Raj Kumar Gupta, withdrew the petition on September 4, 2013, despite lacking the authority to do so.
The current executive officer has since filed a restoration application before the high court, which remains pending. During consolidation proceedings, Saeedul Rahman sought mutation of the land on the basis of the alleged 1967 lease. However, the Municipal Board reported that no lease had ever been issued in his favour.
The district administration said no evidence of the purported lease existed in municipal records, leading authorities to conclude that it was based on forged and fabricated documents.
Current deputy director, consolidation, Om Prakash Anjor issued notices to all concerned parties and conducted hearings. While Saeedul Rahman’s legal heirs did not appear before the court, purchasers of the land were given an opportunity to present their case.
The court concluded that earlier orders had been obtained by concealing material facts and through fraudulent representations.
The district administration has identified the roles of the then deputy director, consolidation, the then executive officer, former map official Shahabuddin and current government representative Majid Khan as suspicious. The DM said action would be initiated against those found responsible.
“The reclaimed land will now be entered into government records. Action will be taken against officials whose role in the alleged illegal lease is found to be questionable. Those using parts of the land for commercial purposes will be directed to vacate the property,” DM Khandelwal said.
