BENGALURU: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a prosecution complaint in connection to a Transferable Development Rights (TDR) scam involving the director of Valmark Realty Holdings Private Ltd (VRHPL) along with 19 other accused, including former employees of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).
The investigation, initiated based on an FIR lodged by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in 2019, claims that VRHPL’s director, Ratan Lath, acquired development right certificates (DRCs) and unlawfully sold TDRs to various real estate companies and individuals, netting illicit profits of approximately ₹27.7 crore.
According to a press release from the ED, TDR brokers K Suresh, K Gautham, and others colluded with previous landowners and certain BBMP officials to secure TDRs by misrepresenting the status of the properties and inflating their valuations.
The ED previously executed searches at nine locations, including the offices of VRHPL, its director, and various builders, brokers, and fraudulent TDR applicants, which highlighted the involvement of TDR brokers and past landowners.
The investigation uncovered a coordinated conspiracy where brokers BS Surendranath, K Gautham, and K Suresh, in collusion with VRHPL and BBMP officials, manipulated the records of rights, tenancy, and crops (RTCs) in favor of heirs of landowners, even though the land at Kowdenahalli (east Bengaluru) had been converted to a revenue layout with numerous third-party occupants. Allegedly, agreements and general powers of attorney were misused to initiate administrative processes, leading to spot mahazars and inflated land valuations, thereby classifying the land as agricultural for development rights issuance.
In a related instance, K Suresh and K Gautham, along with their associates, approached individuals named Muniraju and Srinivas, entering agreements to access TDR benefits despite not being the legitimate landowners. Powers of attorney were wrongly registered at the sub-registrar’s office in Indiranagar to facilitate TDR procurement from BBMP.
It was found that the land was already sold and remained vacant without any structures that would qualify for TDR benefits. Additionally, a building from an adjacent survey number was falsely represented as part of the concerned land to support the recommendation and issuance of development rights certificates.
