Cops take father-son duo to Chandola lake in crackdown on illegal Bangladeshi settlement

AHMEDABAD: The city Crime Branch on Sunday took Mehmood Pathan, alias Lalla Bihari, and his son Fateh Mohammed through various locations around Chandola lake. The duo is accused of operating a large-scale illegal settlement of Bangladeshi nationals in the area.
Police officials took the accused through multiple sites where illegal structures and encroachments were allegedly set up under their direction.

The visit was part of a crime scene reconstruction, during which statements were recorded and the extent of unauthorised occupation documented. Police claimed Lalla Bihari played a central role in providing shelters to illegal immigrants in the vicinity of the lake.
According to investigators, Lalla Bihari was arrested a day earlier from Moti Zher village in Rajasthan's Banswara district. He is accused of using forged electricity bills and fabricated rent agreements to falsely claim tenancy or ownership of land around Chandola lake. These fraudulent documents were allegedly used to set up illegal dwellings, primarily rented out to undocumented Bangladeshi immigrants.
Police say Bihari collected monthly rent and utility payments from these residents, amounting to fraud and breach of trust against both public utilities and occupants.
Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) and city police earlier launched a large-scale demolition drive around the lake, starting early in April 29, clearing around 1.5 lakh sq m of encroached land.
On May 2, AMC began work on a Rs 3 crore precast protection wall along the cleared area, but the project was halted just a day later due to planning concerns, including the absence of proper land surveys.
"This is not a sudden move. It follows six to eight months of groundwork. The action is being carried out in three phases. The first phase is complete, and the second will begin after a detailed survey," a senior state govt officer stated. The officer confirmed that a protection wall would be constructed only after full clearance of remaining encroachments.