Surendranagar land scam: ED tells PMLA court over ₹9.6 crore in bribes taken in 11 months

Investigators from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) have told a court that more than ₹9.60 crore in bribes was allegedly collected by the accused over an 11-month period in connection with the Surendranagar non-agricultural (NA) land conversion scam.

The disclosure was made during a hearing under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in a court in Surendranagar, where the ED presented findings from its ongoing investigation into alleged corruption linked to the reclassification of agricultural land as non-agricultural land.

According to the agency’s submissions, the accused allegedly received over ₹9.60 crore—approximately ₹10 crore—as bribes during the 11-month period.

ED cites WhatsApp chats detailing alleged bribe distribution

During the hearing, the ED said that investigators had obtained WhatsApp chats that allegedly document the distribution of the bribe money among the accused.

According to the agency, the chats contain details of how the alleged payments were divided, including the percentage shares assigned to different individuals involved in the case.

The ED said these digital communications form part of the evidence collected during the investigation.

Court grants conditional bail to one accused

During the proceedings, only accused Mayur Singh Dilipsinh Gohil appeared before the court, while two other accused remained absent.

The PMLA court granted conditional bail to Gohil and allowed further proceedings in the case to continue.

Allegations relate to agricultural land converted to NA status

The case concerns allegations of large-scale corruption in the process of converting agricultural land to non-agricultural (NA) status in Surendranagar district of Gujarat.

Authorities allege that officials misused their positions to facilitate the conversion of land worth crores of rupees in exchange for illegal payments.

Considering the seriousness of the allegations, the ED conducted searches on December 23 last year at multiple locations, including the residence of then Surendranagar Collector Rajendrakumar Patel and other officials.

Earlier, the Gujarat Anti-Corruption Bureau had registered a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 in connection with the alleged irregularities.

Bail plea of former collector listed for hearing

Former Surendranagar Collector Rajendrakumar Patel has filed a bail application in the case.

The court is scheduled to hear his plea on Friday, while the next hearing for the other accused in the case has been listed for March 13.