BARNALA – A non-resident Indian (NRI), Jodha Singh from Canada, climbed atop a water tank several feet high in his native village, Pharwahi, in Barnala district on Monday, to protest alleged inaction in a Rs 3-crore cheating case filed by him against his younger brother and father. Jodha alleged that the money he sent for purchase of land was misappropriated by them and the duo also obtained loans by mortgaging his existing land.
Jodha had climbed sometime in the morning and was atop the tank till the filing of this report at 9pm.
He had thrown down several paper slips — using a notepad and pen that he had with him — with messages in Punjabi such as, “They have cheated me to the tune of Rs 1,51,70,000; besides they have taken a loan of Rs 1.4 crore against my land. No suitable action has been taken on FIR registered on November 17, 2013.” Another read like a will, “My wife Jaspal Kaur will be legal heir of my property in Canada and India. She will take care of my three children. I have Canadian passport.”
Police were at the spot but so far there was no one climbing after him.
His cousin Darshan Singh, with whom Jodha has been staying, said, “He used to send money often to his brother and father from Canada in the last about 16 years. He was perturbed for the last few days. Today, he went out of the house without even taking his morning tea. We searched for him and came to know that he is atop a water tank in the village.”
He was trying to recover the amount from his brother and father for the last over three years but the administration and police did not pay any heed despite the FIR having been registered in 2013, he added.
Superintendent of police (headquarters) Surinder Pal Singh said, “It is a dispute between the brothers. Earlier, SPs have carried out investigation. We are trying to bring him down from the tank. We will take appropriate action against those guilty of cheating.”
Deputy commissioner Bhupinder Singh said, “It is a case of division of ancestral property. Both the parties had approached me sometime back. The matter of their division is already lying with the civil court. If Jodha Singh has any grievance, he should approach the court again. I have asked the SSP to intervene appropriately.”
Panchayat member Kaka Singh said, “Yes, Jodha Singh used to send money to his brother. After the dispute, there was a compromise many times. Jodha always stood by his words, whereas his brother and father backtracked.”
