A Mohali court has acquitted all 11 accused in a 38-year-old case concerning alleged irregularities in the acquisition of land for the Ranjit Sagar Dam project and fraudulent payment of excess compensation.
The court record states that several accused had died during the prolonged proceedings. Proceedings against eight accused — Balbir Chand, Babu Ram, Anant Ram, Dhian Singh, Karnail Singh, Ashwani Kumar, Joginder Singh and Balbir Singh — were abated. Additional sessions judge Rajesh Ahluwalia, in an order dated September 29, granted the accused the benefit of doubt, holding that the prosecution had failed to establish the charges beyond reasonable doubt. The prosecution examined 32 witnesses during the trial, including vigilance officials, revenue officials, patwaris, a naib tehsildar and officials associated with the dam and land acquisition process. Evidence was completed on February 27, 2025, with the testimony of revenue patwari Fateh Singh.
The original 1953-54 Urdu Jamabandi showed the disputed shamlat land at 1,938 kanals 11 marlas, according to the investigation. During its translation into Punjabi in 1967-68, the figure was recorded as 10,938 kanals 11 marlas and continued in subsequent records. A key issue was the discrepancy in the area recorded in revenue documents. The court found that the prosecution had not produced sufficient evidence to establish the alleged criminal conspiracy and other charges beyond reasonable doubt, resulting in the acquittal.
