Residents complain of land-grab menace

Residents complain of land-grab menace
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bangalore: The realty market is heating up in the suburbs, thanks to the focus on developing Greater Bangalore. Not surprisingly, land grabbers have jumped into the fray.
The modus operandi is: comb residential colonies and keep a watch on vacant sites. Put up a board stating the plot is under dispute and mention a petition number. After this, all hell breaks loose. Multiple fake documents of the same property come into circulation, posing a headache to courts as they try to settle the case.
One such incident occurred recently at a bank employees’ residential colony off Meenakshi temple near Bannerghatta Road. A colony of the National Organization of Bangalore Officers is now under threat, with unscrupulous elements staking claim on it. Residents have sought police protection.
The colony, formed by a private developer in 1992, has 400 properties over 12 acres of land. Most owners are employees of nationalized banks who purchased sites for Rs 60/sqft. There are over 250 houses in the locality.
Recently, a group of men were seen in the area, inspecting the vacant properties. “One day, 20 persons came on motorbikes and created a ruckus. They put up boards on the plots claiming the property belonged to them and also painted the compound walls with court order numbers and petition numbers,’’ a Canara Bank manager and resident of the colony said.
“We filed a complaint at the Bannerghatta police station. The police promised to deploy constables and monitor the area continuously,’’ said residents. They suspect it could be the handiwork of land mafia.