SRI LANKA: Disappearance of land titles among other frauds
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) wishes to bring to the attention of the Sri Lankan public that we have learned about the massive frauds relating to tampering with land titles and also other frauds by the misusing the criminal justice process by way of fabrication of charges.
The incidents narrated hereunder would explain the nature of fraud that is taking place on land titles, by the removal of District Land Registry documents from the land registrar's offices. The cases will also reveal, how by unscrupulous manipulation of false charges on innocent people, some massive frauds are taking place.
For reasons of security, the AHRC has withheld the names of the persons who were directly victims in these stories. However the incidents are real and have taken place recently.
Story 1
Upali (1) is a businessman who owns land in a reasonably important area in Galle. He has owned about 40 perches of land, which is his family property for over 80 years. As is becoming more common these days some unscrupulous persons made a false deed and registered it in the District Land Registry for this same land. Upali (1) is unaware of this registration. The newly registered owner sold the land to a company dealing in real estate. This company was requested by a politically powerful family who is trying to develop a big project in the area to find land for them. The company sold several pieces of land including that belonging to Upali (1) to the family.
When the project tried to take possession of the land they discovered that Upali (1) is the legitimate owner of the land but claimed that they were the lawful owners. The company who sold the land to the project was questioned about this issue. It was only at that point that the company found out that the deeds of the person who sold the land was falsely registered and that the lawful owner is Upali (1). The politically powerful family who are the owners of the project placed the matter before the Ministry of Defence who questioned the company about the complications of the transaction.
The company, on the one hand, tried to negotiate with Upali (1) offering a certain amount of money for him to vacate the land and hand it over to the company so that it could in turn, hand it over to the project. On the other hand the company explained to the Ministry of Defence about the complications involved and Upali (1)'s resistance to hand over the land.
While the company was involved in this difficult process tried to correct the mistake they had made in buying the land from the person who had the falsely registered deed and at the same time please the politically powerful family by trying to obtain vacant possession of the land, they explained the complications to the investigators from the Ministry of Defence.
While the negotiations were ongoing between Upali (1) and the company one day he went to a public event and there, two uniformed officers who arrived in a white van arrested him. They told a family member of Upali (1) who was present that they were taking him to a particular police station. Later, members of Upali (1)'s family went to that police station only to be told that there had been no such arrest. The police further stated that they had no information on Upali (1)'s whereabouts. They then contacted the employee of the company who had led the negotiations and learned that the Ministry of Defence was making enquiries about the land and the complications. He also said that he was unable to do anything about this matter and that it was being handled by big people. He was a small man, he told them and it was out of his hands.
Two years have passed since the disappearance of Upali (1) and to date, no one knows his whereabouts. He is considered to be a disappeared person. The family members who are still trying to find Upali (1) are harassed and threatened to give up their enquiries. Eventually they had to flee the country for their own security.
Whatever the claims or land titles that Upali (1) once had are lost and the politically important family has now become the owners of the land as well as other lands which are being used for the project.
Story 2
For reasons of security, the AHRC has withheld the names of the persons who were directly victims in these stories. However the incidents are real and have taken place recently.
Story 1
Upali (1) is a businessman who owns land in a reasonably important area in Galle. He has owned about 40 perches of land, which is his family property for over 80 years. As is becoming more common these days some unscrupulous persons made a false deed and registered it in the District Land Registry for this same land. Upali (1) is unaware of this registration. The newly registered owner sold the land to a company dealing in real estate. This company was requested by a politically powerful family who is trying to develop a big project in the area to find land for them. The company sold several pieces of land including that belonging to Upali (1) to the family.
Upali (1) is a businessman who owns land in a reasonably important area in Galle. He has owned about 40 perches of land, which is his family property for over 80 years. As is becoming more common these days some unscrupulous persons made a false deed and registered it in the District Land Registry for this same land. Upali (1) is unaware of this registration. The newly registered owner sold the land to a company dealing in real estate. This company was requested by a politically powerful family who is trying to develop a big project in the area to find land for them. The company sold several pieces of land including that belonging to Upali (1) to the family.
When the project tried to take possession of the land they discovered that Upali (1) is the legitimate owner of the land but claimed that they were the lawful owners. The company who sold the land to the project was questioned about this issue. It was only at that point that the company found out that the deeds of the person who sold the land was falsely registered and that the lawful owner is Upali (1). The politically powerful family who are the owners of the project placed the matter before the Ministry of Defence who questioned the company about the complications of the transaction.
The company, on the one hand, tried to negotiate with Upali (1) offering a certain amount of money for him to vacate the land and hand it over to the company so that it could in turn, hand it over to the project. On the other hand the company explained to the Ministry of Defence about the complications involved and Upali (1)'s resistance to hand over the land.
While the company was involved in this difficult process tried to correct the mistake they had made in buying the land from the person who had the falsely registered deed and at the same time please the politically powerful family by trying to obtain vacant possession of the land, they explained the complications to the investigators from the Ministry of Defence.
While the negotiations were ongoing between Upali (1) and the company one day he went to a public event and there, two uniformed officers who arrived in a white van arrested him. They told a family member of Upali (1) who was present that they were taking him to a particular police station. Later, members of Upali (1)'s family went to that police station only to be told that there had been no such arrest. The police further stated that they had no information on Upali (1)'s whereabouts. They then contacted the employee of the company who had led the negotiations and learned that the Ministry of Defence was making enquiries about the land and the complications. He also said that he was unable to do anything about this matter and that it was being handled by big people. He was a small man, he told them and it was out of his hands.
Two years have passed since the disappearance of Upali (1) and to date, no one knows his whereabouts. He is considered to be a disappeared person. The family members who are still trying to find Upali (1) are harassed and threatened to give up their enquiries. Eventually they had to flee the country for their own security.
Whatever the claims or land titles that Upali (1) once had are lost and the politically important family has now become the owners of the land as well as other lands which are being used for the project.
Story 2
