Hyderabad: Police in Hyderabad have arrested ten individuals, including a staff member of the Telangana State Archives and Research Institute, for their alleged involvement in a conspiracy to usurp 100 acres of government property estimated to be worth around ₹700 crore. Investigators stated that the suspects attempted to claim the land by forging an ancient royal decree from the Nizam period.
The contested property is situated within Survey No. 613 at Nadergul in the Balapur mandal of Rangareddy district. This specific survey number encompasses over 373 acres of government land that has been the subject of longstanding ownership disputes involving various private claimants.
According to law enforcement officials, a collective of 46 individuals began asserting claims over approximately 100 acres of the parcel starting in 2023. To legitimize their assertions, the group allegedly hatched a plan to manufacture a fabricated farman, or royal decree, dating back to the Nizam era.
The conspirators reportedly contacted a clerk at the State Archives and Research Institute located in Tarnaka, bribing him to facilitate the creation of the fraudulent document. With the employee's assistance, a fake farman was generated on March 28, 2023, mimicking historical decrees from the former princely state.
The 46 claimants subsequently divided into two factions and approached the Rangareddy District Legal Services Authority with the forged paperwork to secure ownership rights. Authorities believe the factions intended to split the acreage among themselves regardless of which group successfully obtained a favorable ruling through the legal proceedings.
The scheme surfaced when the dispute was brought before the District Legal Services Authority for a hearing. Officials noticed anomalies within the submitted farman and initiated verification checks against authentic records preserved at the state archives, ultimately exposing the forgery.
Following the discovery, a formal complaint was filed, resulting in a case being registered under multiple legal provisions concerning criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery, and the manipulation of public records. Police indicated that a total of 46 individuals are implicated in the plot, and further arrests are anticipated as the investigation continues.