Old Land Documents Of Sambhal's Jama Masjid Area Go Missing, FIR Filed
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The Sambhal district administration, which has lodged an FIR, said several archival documents preserved in Moradabad land record room were either tampered with or have gone missing
Sambhal's Shahi Jama Masjid area is in the spotlight once again — not for the ongoing court-ordered survey, but over the mysterious disappearance of several archival land documents related to Sambhal's urban areas, including localities surrounding the mosque, leaving the Sambhal district administrative machinery in a tizzy.
The Sambhal district administration, which has lodged a First Information Report (FIR) over the missing records, confirmed that several archival documents preserved in the Moradabad land record room were either tampered with or have gone completely missing.
The discovery, made during a routine administrative search prompted by ongoing court-ordered surveys of the Shahi Jama Masjid premises, has triggered concerns about deliberate attempts to obscure land ownership and manipulate historical property claims.
The matter surfaced when the Sambhal district administration required legacy land documents housed in Moradabad, the parent district from which Sambhal was carved out in 2012. An official involved in the retrieval process revealed that critical files related to areas such as Sambhal Khas, Sultanpur Bujurg, Tashtpur, Sarai Tareen, Mandalai, and Dalavali — all situated in urban Sambhal — were found to be either defaced, forged, or completely destroyed.
Officials said that the documents were part of the old land archives preserved in Moradabad following the bifurcation of districts. Officials fear these records were intentionally targeted so that the rightful ownership of certain plots — especially those in prime urban locations — would become legally untenable.
On the complaint of Sambhal Khas lekhpal Gyanesh Kumar, an FIR was lodged at the Moradabad police station. The FIR invokes sections 324(4) (mischief and damage to property), 336(3) (forging records), and 303(2) (stealing official records) under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), marking the seriousness of the offence.
Besides this, the district administration has also pressed in a team led by lekhpals Rahul Kumar Dhariwal and others, including Sparsh Gupta, Champat Singh, Sandeep Kumar, and Mukesh Kumar, to inspect the disappearance of the land records. According to their statements, various documents had been torn, altered with ink erasures, rendered unreadable through smudging, or were completely missing — pointing towards a coordinated effort to erase historical land ownership trails.
ADMINISTRATIVE ALARM BELLS
Regional Inspection Officer (RIO) Shiv Dayal Singh, who is leading the inquiry, expressed concern over the 'systematic sabotage" of public records. 'Some of the documents were deliberately damaged and stolen. This appears to be a premeditated attempt to erase evidence of rightful ownership and may potentially fuel long-term legal disputes," Singh said.
He added that the disappearance of these critical land documents is not just an administrative failure, but a threat to property security and public trust. 'When legal titles are questioned, property becomes a flashpoint. This kind of manipulation could inflame tensions in already sensitive areas," he warned.
HISTORICAL AND LEGAL CONTEXT
The episode adds another layer to Sambhal's already complex land-related narrative. Since being carved out of Moradabad in July 2012, Sambhal has carried forward many of its predecessor's bureaucratic burdens, including the handling of archival land records. The Shahi Jama Masjid itself has recently been under judicial scrutiny, and the timing of this revelation has deepened public speculation about a possible link between ongoing legal proceedings and the sabotage of documents.
Under the new BNS framework, offences such as record forgery and archival theft are considered serious crimes, punishable with stringent legal consequences. Officials have assured that accountability will be fixed, and the culprits — whether internal or external to the land department — will face prosecution.
LANDOWNERS AFFECTED
The investigation is ongoing, and administrative teams from both Moradabad and Sambhal have been tasked with conducting a comprehensive audit of remaining land records. There is also growing demand from legal experts and public representatives for digitisation and secure archival of all historical land documents to prevent similar incidents in the future.
In the meantime, landowners and residents from the affected areas are bracing for a prolonged legal limbo.
First Published:
May 23, 2025, 18:36 IST
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