The Enforcement Directorate has arrested Ajay Sehgal, Secretary of the Indian Cooperative House Building Society, in connection with an alleged fake Change of Land Use (CLU) scam linked to the Suntec City project in Jalandhar. The arrest was made on Friday evening as part of an ongoing money laundering investigation that has already started exposing serious irregularities in Punjab’s real estate approval system.
According to officials, the case began after several farmers approached Punjab Police claiming that their signatures and thumb impressions had been forged to obtain CLU permissions for land they never agreed to give for development purposes. Based on these complaints, an FIR was registered, following which the ED stepped in to investigate the financial angle of the case.
Investigators claim that forged consent letters related to nearly 30.5 acres of land belonging to 15 landowners were allegedly prepared and submitted to secure approvals for the Suntec City project. The agency believes the documents were used to mislead authorities and push through permissions for a large-scale real estate development.
Ajay Sehgal was produced before a court after his arrest and has been sent to four days of ED remand. Officials are now questioning him over the alleged creation of fake documents, financial transactions, and the role of government officials in clearing the project.
Earlier this month, the ED carried out raids at eight different premises linked to the Indian Cooperative House Building Society and ABS Township Private Limited. During the searches, officials recovered Rs 21 lakh in cash in dramatic circumstances after the money was allegedly thrown from a balcony and scattered onto the road below. ED teams later collected the cash and added it to the investigation records.
The probe has also expanded beyond the Suntec City project. Investigators say Sehgal was associated with other developments, including the La Canela residential complex and District 7 commercial project. The ED suspects that approvals for these projects may also have been obtained through manipulated documentation and illegal practices.
Officials involved in the investigation have further alleged that units in some of these projects were sold before receiving mandatory approvals from the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA). The agency is now examining whether buyers were misled and whether laws governing property sales were violated.
The role of senior officials in GMADA and the Department of Town and Country Planning has also come under scrutiny. ED sources claim that some officials may have supported the approvals process in exchange for illegal gratifications. Financial records, approval files, and internal communications are now being examined to establish the extent of involvement.
Another issue under investigation is the alleged failure to transfer plots reserved for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) to the GMADA Estate Officer, despite it being a mandatory requirement under development rules.
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Read MoreThe ED has indicated that more arrests are likely as the investigation progresses. Officials believe the case could expose a larger network involving developers, middlemen, and public servants linked to questionable land approvals in Punjab.
The case has already sparked fresh concerns over corruption in the state’s real estate sector, especially regarding how major housing projects receive approvals despite repeated complaints from landowners. With the ED now widening its probe, more high-profile names are expected to come under the scanner in the coming weeks.