Kalina land-grabbing case: Insider nailed, but bungalow owner still out

Roque D’Souza at a relative’s home in Vakola

Even as the Vakola police arrested the main accused in the Kalina land grabbing case who was later released on bail, 68-year-old Roque D'Souza is yet to get possession of his bungalow. When the police sought custody of the multi-crore bungalow in Santacruz East, which has been mired in a legal case since 2019 with D'Souza claiming that it was illegally grabbed by his brother Joseph and other accused, they found that the property is already involved in another case.

D'Souza said, "I don't have any money in my pocket and I am still running from pillar to post to get my bungalow back. I am also staying with my relatives and friends for a few days. It is too painful at this age. I am struggling for my own property." The case came to fore in 2019 when D'Souza was in prison for allegedly killing his wife. He learnt that someone had taken over the property and filed a complaint with the Vakola police.

Police then launched a probe and found that the 6,500-sq ft bungalow was grabbed by Joseph and two others - Abid Ali Mushtaque Tanaji and Prem Chandran. Cops in 2019 arrested both Tanaji and Chandran, who were later released on bail, while Joseph was absconding. D'Souza's family members had also alleged the involvement of Senior Inspector Kailashchandra Awhad from Vakola police station in helping Tanaji grab the land.

A view of Roque D'Souza's bungalow in Kalina, Santacruz

However, when D'Souza was acquitted of murdering his wife in January this year, he found Tanaji had again taken over the bungalow. A police officer said, "After D'Souza was released from jail, he had gone to his home and found that the accused Tanaji had again grabbed it." D'Souza again informed the cops, following which police sought documents from Tanaji. The accused then submitted three documents, all of which were found fake upon verification. Meanwhile, cops finally traced and arrested Joseph from Bengaluru on March 5 and brought him to Mumbai.

An officer from Vakola police station said, "We reinvestigated this matter and found that the accused Joseph was absconding in the case and we traced him from Bangalore. We arrested the accused Joseph D'souza on March 5 and after 15-16 days he was released on bail of Rs 50,000. Joseph didn't even have to pay the bail amount himself as the other accused Tanaji helped him. He has even taken Joseph into the Kalina bungalow." The police are in the process of filing a charge sheet in the case. "We found that earlier Tanaji had offered Rs 2 crore to Joseph D'souza for help in grabbing the land. However, Tanaji only gave him R72,000 till now," said another officer.

Fake documents

Of the three documents Tanaji submitted, one was a sale deed, one was a conveyance deed and the other was a gift deed. As per the sale deed, Brazil Policrap Anacatius, who resided on this plot before 1952, sold the property to Ebrahim Rajan Meghoji on April 18, 1951. The conveyance deed, dated April 3, 1980, was between Ebrahim Rajan Meghoji and Tanaji's father Mushtaque Tanaji. And lastly the gift deed mentioned that Mushtaque Tanaji handed over the property to his son in 1999. The police found all of them to be fake.

D'Souza with police personnel outside the bungalow in January

The other property dispute

As per D'Souza, after Anacatius left, the property came into the possession of his father Louis D'Souza who registered the property in his own name in 1952 after the then government ruled that people can stake claim to the property they are residing in. He said the property, which has three shops and one small house, is still in his father's name.

D'Souza had rented out the small house to someone, who allegedly left the city. Meanwhile, another man, who was employed for renovation work, grabbed hold of the room in the absence of D'Souza and filed a case before Dindoshi court, staking claim. As this case is still pending before the court, the Vakola police cannot take it into custody. "We applied for custody of the bungalow under Section 145 of CrPC, but the court rejected it because of a suit filed by a tenant who was living at this place," a cop said.

March 5
Day accused Joseph D'Souza was arrested

2019
Year when the case came to the fore