CHENNAI: A deputy collector was arrested by the city central crime branch team for his alleged involvement in the Kolathur lake area land grabbing case.

R. Shanmugham, 63, was taken into custody on Monday by the CCB team, led by assistant commissioner M. Anbumozhi and inspector Dharmalingam, on charges of abetting cheating and forgery to help two persons acquire a part of Kolathur lake area worth Rs. 6 crores. He was later remanded to judicial custody.

The police earlier arrested Arumugham Reddiar and Srinivasan on Saturday based on a complaint filed by Purasawalkam tahsildar Bhuvaneswaran with the Commissioner of Police as per the instruction of district revenue officer U. Sagayam.

Mr. Anbumozhi said the accused had passed an order granting patta in June 2000, when he was assistant settlement officer with the Survey and Land department at Tiruvannamalai. Based on this "illegal order," Arumugham and Srinivasan tried to obtain patta for two acres and two cents of `eri' poromboke land near Padi Railway Station off 100 feet road.

Meanwhile they even sold off various portions of the land where commercial and residential structures have come up.

The accused was suspended from service the same year, just before his retirement, for allegedly manipulating the pay fixation of certain teachers in Kancheepuram, said Mr. Anbumozhi. "We are looking into the involvement of six more officials including two deputy collectors," he added.

Demolition

Meanwhile, the district administration is gearing up to pull down the nearly 25 big and small commercial structures that have come up at the site.

"We are finding out details about more such encroachments so we can reclaim Government land in the city as well as check corruption in the system," said Chennai Collector S. Chandramohan.

Another senior official said action would be soon initiated against the owners of a college which has come up on 50 cents of Government land at Koyambedu based on a similar order issued by former deputy collector Shanmugham.

"The order was cancelled 15 days ago. But there are 15 more such orders issued by the same officer pertaining to granting of patta for Government land. We have written to higher authorities to cancel them as they are not in order," the official added.

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