Gangsters Act invoked against Noida land mafias

Five land mafias who fraudulently sold flood-prone and farm land to people were Monday booked under the stringent Uttar Pradesh GangstersAct by the Gautam Buddh Nagar administration, officials said.

Chandra Pal of Noida, Mohd Naushad and Mohd Rizauddin Ansari from Delhi and Suraj Sharma and Mahesh Chandra Sharma from Ghaziabad were booked by the police.

The accused allegedly sold flood-prone land along the Hindon river as well as agricultural land in Shahberi to unsuspecting people, a police officer said.

They also failed to get the requisite permissions from the concerned authorities, the officer added.

Based on a report by Senior Superintendent of Police Ajay Pal Sharma, District Magistrate Brajesh Narain Singh pressed the charges under the Uttar Pradesh Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, 1986, an official statement said.

The district administration is committed to ensure strict action against criminals. Therefore, similar action will be taken against mafias and criminals in future as well, Singh said.

The Gautam Buddh Nagar administration, where law and order has been a major concern, recently announced attaching properties and stopping financial transactions of the nearly 600 people booked under the Gangsters Act since April 2017.

The UP GangstersAct provides special provisions for the prevention of and for coping with gangsters and anti-social activities.