Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: A first information report (FIR) against Goa MLA Jit Vinayak Arolkar in connection with a land grabbing case was dismissed by the Supreme Court on Monday.
Arolkar’s appeal against a Bombay High Court ruling that had refused to dismiss the cheating case against him was granted by a bench of Justices AS Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan.
Rawloo Khalap filed a complaint against Arolkar, the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party’s Mandrem, Goa, MLA, alleging that Arolkar had defrauded him of ₹25.6 crore by selling a property in which Khalap was a co-owner.
It was claimed that the sale took place between 2013 and 2018 without the necessary land conversion, subdivision, or development of the entire site.
Arolkar said that Khalap was not the property’s owner and that he was serving as the co-owners’ power of attorney.
The Bombay High Court, however, dismissed this argument, finding that Khalap’s name and that of his forefathers were listed in the survey documents. Arolkar also argued that the disagreement was civil in character, but the High Court rejected this claim and allowed a special investigative team to be established in order to carry out further research.
Arolkar had stated that Khalap was not an owner and that he was acting as a power of attorney holder for two other co-owners.
This argument was denied by the High Court, which noted that Khalap’s and his predecessors’ names were listed in the survey documents.
Arolkar also argued that the conflict was civil in nature, but the High Court rejected this claim. As a result, it had permitted a special investigative team to continue their investigation.
As a result, Arolkar filed an appeal with the Supreme Court.
