Ex-MP, wife held for land grabbing

Central Crime Branch on Saturday arrested former Rajya Sabha MP Mastan and his wife on charges of grabbing a land worth over Rs. 2 crore using fake documents. Three accomplices of the couple were also arrested.

Sources with the CCB said the arrested were D. Mastan (55), a resident of Wallajah Road, Triplicane and his wife Sivabhakyam (50), both medical practitioners who run a hospital in Triplicane. Mastan, a former member of Rajya Sabha, purchased a land in Sholinganallur a few years ago and tried to usurp a 24-cent plot of land adjacent to his property.

The disputed property belonged to one Mohammed Hussain of Karnataka who passed away in 2008. The property went to his legal heirs who tried to sell it to a real estate agent named Anwar of Adyar.

“As the land remained unattended for years, Mastan made a fake gift deed as if the property was given to Jani Basha who is the uncle of his neighbour Hajeera Begum (47). Later, a sale deed was made as if Basha had sold the land to three relatives of Sivabhakyam in Coimbatore,” said P.R. Jesurajan, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Anti Land-Grabbing Cell, CCB.

The three relatives gave Sivabhakyam the power of attorney for the land and she in turn, put a sale deed in her son's name.

The foul play came to light when the complainant Anwar verified the documents to promote the land and later lodged a complaint with the Commissioner of Police in Egmore.

A team probing the case arrested Mastan and Sivabhakyam on Saturday morning. The couple's neighbour Hajeera Begum, their relative Thirunarayanan (46) and driver Saravanan (39) were also held.

Jani Basha, who is also a suspect, had passed away in 2010.