• Forged GPA and illegal sale of land

Dear Sir,
We have some ancestral 3 and half acres property purchased in 1988 by my father on my elder brother, mother and sisters name. All three transactions are registered and we are in possession of original sale deed.However in 1999 after my father's death in 1999 some people have created forged General Power of Attorney (no resemblance to original signatures) and sold these lands to a real estate firm who have done layouts and sold them further to other buyers.
I have recently found the original sale deeds and have obtained copies of certified copies of the GPA's too basis which it's clear these GPA's are forged and illegal. 

Unfortunately except my sister everyone else I.e. my father, mother and elder brother passed away. They were working as govt servants and we have several documents consisting their original signatures. I was working overseas and far way from home and only returned after my brothers death and discovered these facts now.

Please advise how should I proceed with this case as this involves a big real estate firm and several individual plot owners. The total land is worth in several now and we want to get justice.
Asked 8 years ago in Civil Law

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8 Answers

1) you will have to move court to set aside sale deed on basis of forged POA in favour of real estate firm and buyers

2) also make buyers party to suit

3) you will have to file complaint of cheating , fabrication of documents against persons who forged your fathers signature

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
94734 Answers
7539 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Hi

Forged GPA'S:

1) You first need to file a criminal complaint against the persons who created the false, fabricated GPA and also the Real estate firm under sections 419, 420, 465, 467, 468, 471, 120-B, 34 and 114 of the Indian Penal Code in the police station or file a private complaint under the above sections in the court under section 156(3) of the Code.

Section 419 : Punishment for cheating by personation

Section 420 : Cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property

Section 465 : Punishment for forgery

Section 467 : Forgery of valuable security, will, etc.

Section 468 : Forgery for purpose of cheating

Section 471: Using as genuine a forged document or electronic record

2) Your should also file a civil suit in the District court and ask the court to cancel all the sale deeds and also ask for declaration of your ownership and also a permanent injunction against the real estate firm and several individual plot owners.

3) We can ask the courts to issue directions to Forensic labs for comparison of signatures and establish forgery and also award punishments for fraud, forgery

4) As long as you are on the right side, law will protect you and you need not worry about the size or money power of real estate firm.

Hope this helps.

Rajgopalan Sripathi
Advocate, Hyderabad
2173 Answers
394 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

This is not ancestral property as it was registered in favour of your mother and siblings'. Be that as it may, if the lands have been sold on the basis of a forged GPA then a suit for cancellation of the sale deed is required to be filed. The suit can be filed by your sister or the legal heirs of your mother and deceased brother. This apart, a criminal complaint for cheating and breach of trust should also be filed.

Ashish Davessar
Advocate, Jaipur
30763 Answers
972 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

First of all creation of GPA after the death of your father is invalid and illegal.

Gather all the documentary evidences by which these documents were fabricated, lodge a land grabbing case on the basis of legal heir to the deceased owners with the police and also with the anti land grabbing special police, if one is available in your state.

Simultaneously file a suit for possession of the illegally occupier property by the land grabbers on the strength of various fabricated documents.

You may also file a mandatory injunction suit against those people for restraining them from further alienation.

Consult a local advocate and discuss the issues in detail about all the issues involved in it and proceed with legal case for relief and remedy.

T Kalaiselvan
Advocate, Vellore
84935 Answers
2197 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

1) individual buyers claim is against builder and not you

2) you can obtain stay order in a month . final hearing of suit may take years

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
94734 Answers
7539 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

You may have to implead them as parties to suit to seek relief agaisnt them also for having purchased the properties without properly scrutinizing the documents.

The time taken by court as you rightly said is not predictable, however you may instruct your advocate to pressurise before court in the event of unnecessary delay or intentional dragging by the opponent on any petty issue.

T Kalaiselvan
Advocate, Vellore
84935 Answers
2197 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

1. The individual buyers can file the cases individually or a class action lawsuit may be filed by all the buyers. There are many tactics employed by the lawyer so that the legal proceedings can be delayed.

2. It may take up to a year to two in the court.

Ashish Davessar
Advocate, Jaipur
30763 Answers
972 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Hi

A crime is a crime. We should first file case against the makers of forged document and the real estate firm.

The legal strategy will be to take an injunction against the real estate firm and its employees.

Technically the individual buyers will also need to be impleaded in the civil suit as Defendants. However we might not know the names of all individual buyers in the initial stage. So we will ask the court not to entertain civil suits of individual buyers without hearing us(this is called caveat) and we can ask the court to club all cases together and hear the complaint against real estate firm, the individual buyers as a single case.

The court might pass a temporary injunction within 4 months and a decree (declaratory title and decree against the real estate firm and the individual buyers) within 2 years. A good lawyer will ensure that the case is listed once in 15 days and progresses in each and every hearing.

Rajgopalan Sripathi
Advocate, Hyderabad
2173 Answers
394 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

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