SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has registered a case against Bharat Bhushan Sharma, the former Managing Director of the Jammu and Kashmir Cooperative Housing Corporation (JKCHC), along with several revenue officials and beneficiaries, for their alleged involvement in the illegal occupation and allotment of state land.
The case follows a preliminary enquiry (PE) into allegations that JKCHC had purchased 392 kanal of land from private individuals to establish a housing colony at Bain Bajalta in Jammu district. However, during the process, the corporation also illegally occupied Kah Charai, Maqbuza Sarkar, and Jammu Development Authority (JDA) land. Investigators found that JKCHC, in connivance with officials from the Revenue Department, unlawfully took over 584 kanal of land, including a substantial portion of state land, which was later allotted to various individuals.
The enquiry revealed that JKCHC had acquired land for the housing colony and, in doing so, encroached upon 111 kanal and 17 marlas of state land. Additionally, it occupied 100 kanal and 15 marlas of land under Khasra numbers 16 min, 17 min, 219 min, and 573/34 min. This land belonged to individuals granted ownership under the Jammu and Kashmir Agrarian Reforms Act of 1976 and Government Order No. S-432.
The investigation further established that officials of JKCHC and the Revenue Department had acted in collusion with beneficiaries to facilitate the transfer of rights over the land in violation of government provisions. The officials allegedly abused their positions to misrepresent facts and fraudulently grant undue benefits to themselves, the corporation, and the beneficiaries.
Those implicated in the case include Bharat Bhushan Sharma, former MD of JKCHC; Shesh Paul Salgotra and Sanjay Badyal, both former Tehsildars of Jammu; Mahesh Chander, former Naib Tehsildar of Sidhra; Farooq Hussain and Nek Mohammad, both former Patwaris of Bain Bajalta; as well as other beneficiaries. The offences have been booked under Section 5(1)(d) read with Section 5(2) of the Jammu and Kashmir Prevention of Corruption Act, 2006, and Sections 420, 465, 467, 468, 471, and 120-B of the Ranbir Penal Code (RPC).
The ACB has registered FIR No. 02/2025 at its Central Police Station, and further investigations are underway.
