K’taka: 9 arrested for forging land records to grab 6 acres worth over Rs 100 crore belonging to Adichunchanagiri Trust

Bengaluru, July 14 (IANS) The Kengeri Police have arrested nine persons, including revenue officials, for allegedly forging government records and attempting to illegally grab six acres of land worth over Rs 100 crore belonging to the Sri Adichunchanagiri Shikshana Trust in Kambipura village on the outskirts of Bengaluru, according to a statement issued by Deputy Commissioner of Police (South-East) Anita Haddannavar on Tuesday.

The arrested accused have been identified as Francis, Arogyaswamy, Srinivas, Narendra Kumar, Josephine, Deputy Tahsildars Deepak and M.P. Ravi, Revenue Inspectors Kiran Kumar and Arun Kumar, and Village Administrative Officer Satish Kumar. Police said several other accused are absconding, including Naresh Gowda, who allegedly assisted in preparing the forged documents, and revenue department staff Srikanth, Manjunath and Raghavendra.

According to police, the land is part of a 45-acre property owned by the Sri Adichunchanagiri Shikshana Trust in Survey No. 43 of Kambipura village in Kengeri Hobli, Bengaluru South Taluk.

Police investigations revealed that the accused allegedly fabricated a fake family tree, forged death certificates, fake grant certificates and other revenue documents to falsely claim ownership of six acres of the Trust’s land.

According to investigators, the conspiracy centred around Francis, who allegedly colluded with several revenue officials and others to create forged records showing that the land had originally been granted to one Arogyaswamy bin Antony under the military quota during 1960-61. Using the fabricated documents, the accused allegedly secured illegal mutation of the land records and attempted to take possession of a portion of the Trust’s property.

The case was registered following a complaint lodged by the Secretary of the Sri Adichunchanagiri Shikshana Trust at the Kumbalagodu Police Station on June 10, 2026. Based on the complaint, police registered a criminal case under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, including Sections 318(4), 319(2), 336(2), 336(3), 329(3), 340(2) and 351(2).

Investigators suspect that the accused may have used similar forged documents to target other parcels of land as well. Police said additional evidence gathered during the investigation indicates that more land-grabbing attempts may have been carried out using fabricated revenue records.

Further investigation is underway to identify other beneficiaries of the alleged conspiracy and trace additional forged documents.

It can be noted that Sri Adichunchanagiri Mahasamsthana Math is a prominent religious and educational institution headquartered at Adichunchanagiri in Mandya district, Karnataka. It is one of the state’s most influential socio-religious institutions. The institution is headed by Jagadguru Nirmalanandanatha Mahaswamiji.

–IANS

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