HYDERABAD: A special judge of the Anti-Corruption Court (Provincial), Khalil Anwar Jafri, on Wednesday dismissed the pre-arrest bail applications of three revenue officials and a former union committee (UC) secretary in a case involving the fraudulent transfer of property belonging to Nanki Bai, a woman living in the United States.
The case was registered on July 22, 2025, by Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) circle officer Khalil Mehmood Khanzada under Crime No 3/25. The accused are Ghulam Mustafa Shar, city survey officer; Ghulam Murtaza Mallah, city surveyor, Ward-1; Ahmed Hussain Langah, sub-registrar, Hyderabad City; and Mushtaq Ali Unnar, former secretary of UC-3, Hyderabad. Nine other people have also been booked by the ACE.
According to the FIR, the case concerns a property measuring 132-07 square yards in Ward-A, Market Tower, Hyderabad, owned by Ms Nanki Bai, daughter of Lokumal Mohan Lal. She had given a general power of attorney to her nephew Prem Hiranand Chugani.
Mr Chugani, the complainant, told the ACE that the property had been illegally mutated in favour of Sheela, daughter of Mohan Lal, on the basis of a fake death certificate. He said the mutation was carried out by Mr Mallah and Mr Shar without following the procedure requiring the person concerned to appear in person.
The complainant said the sale of the property was facilitated by Mr Langah, who accepted and processed an unregistered and unverified power of attorney and two registered sale deeds – one in favour of Khadim Hussain and the other from Khadim Hussain to Mohammad Subhan and Mohammad Huzaifa – without verifying the authenticity of the title and mutation records.
The transaction relied on a death certificate issued by Mr Unnar, then secretary of the now-defunct UC-87, which was found to be fake. Nadra and UC records, along with other evidence, confirmed that Nanki Bai was alive and living in the US.
The complainant said the forgery was further established by an order of the additional deputy commissioner-I, Hyderabad, who cancelled the entry and directed that the property be restored to Nanki Bai. Sheela, the alleged beneficiary, denied having applied for the change and acknowledged that Nanki Bai was alive.
Assistant Prosecutor General Waheed Bajarani said Nanki Bai had confirmed through a video message from the US that she was alive, and that the death certificate was fake.
Published in Dawn, October 2nd, 2026
