Lucknow: Lucknow Police have arrested a wanted accused involved in a land fraud case in which agricultural land was illegally sold using a fake Aadhaar card created in the name of a deceased person. The arrest was made by Mohanlalganj police under the Southern Zone of the Lucknow Police Commissionerate as part of a special drive launched on the directions of Police Commissioner Amrendra Singh Sengar.
The operation was carried out under the supervision of Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Nipun Agrawal, with guidance from Additional DCP Rallapalli Basanth Kumar and Assistant Commissioner of Police (Mohanlalganj) Vikas Kumar Pandey. The arrest was executed by a team led by Station House Officer Inspector Brajesh Kumar Tripathi.
According to the police, an FIR (Case Crime No. 562/25) was registered at Mohanlalganj police station under Sections 318(4), 338, 336(3) and 340(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) in connection with a forged sale deed of agricultural land located in village Udaipur Nigohan. The complainant, Vimla Singh, alleged that land registered in the name of her late husband, Avadhraj Singh, was fraudulently sold using forged documents after his death.
Police investigations revealed that plot number 296, measuring 0.449 hectares, was jointly recorded in revenue records in the names of Snehlata Verma and late Avadhraj Singh. Despite Avadhraj Singh having passed away on February 16, 2023, the accused impersonated him and executed a sale deed of approximately 17 biswa of land on July 18, 2024, at the Mohanlalganj Sub-Registrar’s Office. Fake Aadhaar cards, photographs and other forged documents were prepared in the name of the deceased, and a fake witness was also produced during the registration.
Further investigation disclosed that accused Harishankar alias Shankar opened a bank account in the name of the deceased Avadhraj Singh at the Bank of Maharashtra, Kalli West branch, using the fake Aadhaar card. The sale proceeds were deposited into this account. The buyer, Hetram Pal, a resident of Sharda Nagar, Ashiana, was himself cheated and paid a total amount of ₹7.20 lakh through cheque and cash.
Police found evidence that the fraud was carried out through a well-organized conspiracy involving Rajkumar, Gyanendra Rajput, Kamal Yadav, Sarvesh and Harishankar alias Shankar. Earlier, Rajkumar, Gyanendra Rajput and Sarvesh had already been arrested in the case. On February 7, 2026, police arrested Harishankar alias Shankar near Ganpati Sweets in the PGI police station area.
During interrogation, the accused confessed that he met Rajkumar and Gyanendra in 2024 and, for a payment of ₹2,000, agreed to open a bank account in the name of the deceased using forged documents and also signed as Avadhraj Singh. Police further revealed that a cheque of ₹3 lakh deposited into the fake account was used by co-accused Rajkumar to purchase an LED television and a Voltas air conditioner, both of which have already been recovered.
The arrested accused, Harishankar alias Shankar (32), is a resident of village Kaneri, Motika Purwa, under Nagarama police station, Lucknow, and works as a daily wage labourer. He has been sent to judicial custody, and further legal proceedings are underway.
The arresting team included Sub-Inspector Yashwant Singh and Constable Arun Kumar Yadav.
