Assam: Advocate With Alleged Links To Land Mafia Arrested In Barpeta

BARPETA: The police have apprehended an advocate in Assam's Barpeta district over his alleged links with the land mafia. 

The identity of the accused advocate has been revealed as Robiul Hussain, who was arrested by the crime branch on Tuesday night. 

It has been found that Hussain, who was nabbed in Barpeta, was closely associated with Samsul Haque, the mastermind of the land mafia operation.

Hussain had previously worked as a security guard at the Kamrup Metropolitan District Commissioner's Office before his arrest.

It is to be noted that Haque had hatched a plot with two deputy registrars to carry out the fraudulent land scam.

Meanwhile, it has been learnt that owners of land considered weak in nature are more likely to have their property snatched from them by a nexus of a section of land sharks, advocates, and government officials.

This fact emerged during a press conference by Guwahati police commissioner Diganta Barah earlier last year.

Commissioner Barah said a nexus of a section of the land mafia, advocates, and corrupt government officials have been using fraudulent means to transfer land ownership in the Kamrup (Metro) district for a long time now.

He said, "The police usually file a case in land matters only when violence is involved or there is a report of unauthorized entry into a plot of land. These cases are in the police records. Recently, it came to the attention of the police and revenue officials in the district administration that fraud cases in land have increased after many such complaints came in. We analyzed the cases and discovered several cases of land grabbing by using fraud."

Barah said that in 2023, there were 242 complaints of land-related fraud, of which 82 cases were registered and 71 arrested. In 2022, there were 215 such complaints, with 53 cases registered and 34 arrested.

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