Govt. land records found in private farmhouse, probe ordered into ‘land scam’

Recent raids by the Karnataka Lokayukta found a huge cache of government land revenue records pertaining to Kolar district at a private person’s farmhouse, leading to a suo motu case being taken up. Probing allegations of fake documents being created to falsely establish grants over government land, involving a senior survey supervisor, the Lokayukta raided several premises, including the farmhouse of a friend of the prime accused in Hoskote, where government documents were found.

During the searches, investigators seized 435 documents, including 128 original government records, such as grant registers, patta books, khata registers, podi records, and other land revenue documents. Officials suspect that the original records had been illegally removed from government offices and stored at a private farmhouse to facilitate the creation of forged land records.

According to the inquiry, forged records were allegedly prepared in connection with government land measuring around 485 acres, resulting in an estimated loss of ₹768 crore to the State exchequer.

False records created

The probe so far has revealed that a Senior Survey Supervisor, along with junior staff, allegedly acted in nexus with Tahsildars and other revenue officials to access original land records. Investigators believe forged documents were created using fake seals and fabricated signatures of former Tahsildars of Malur, Kolar, and Srinivaspura to falsely establish grants over government land.

The probe has further revealed allegations that village maps were tampered with to match the forged grant documents, enabling the fabricated records to be incorporated into official land records. Once the forged entries were created, beneficiaries were allegedly asked to apply for khata and RTC, following which revenue records were generated on the basis of the manipulated documents.

Sources said the alleged racket was operated for substantial monetary gains, with beneficiaries reportedly paying lakhs of rupees for the illegal regularisation of land records.

Special team 

Observing the seriousness of the allegations, the Lokayukta said the disappearance of original government land records from official custody and their recovery from a private location indicated serious administrative lapses and possible criminal misconduct. It stressed the need to fix accountability on the officials involved and ensure the protection of government land records.

The Lokayukta also directed the Deputy Commissioner, Tahsildars, and ADLR officials of Kolar district to appear before the authority and furnish information regarding the missing original records, besides identifying officials responsible for the alleged irregularities. However, the order notes that the district administration has not yet submitted the required report.

The Lokayukta has scheduled the next hearing in the matter on August 21, 2026, at 3.30 p.m., in the presence of senior officials of the Revenue Department.