Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The Benami Prohibition Unit (BPU) of the Income Tax department has provisionally attached a school building constructed by a trust in which Uma Sharma, mother of former transport constable Saurabh Sharma, and his close associates Chetan Singh Gaur and Sharad Jaiswal are trustees. The school building is valued at Rs 7.5 crore.
The trust, Rajmata (Bharatmata) Shiksha Evam Samaj Kalyan Samiti, built the school in Shahpura area. During investigation, BPU found the property to be benami under the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions (PBPT) Act, 1988.
With the Samiti as the benamidar and Saurabh Sharma as the beneficial owner, the BPU attached the property under Section 24(3) of the PBPT Act and issued show-cause notices to t benamidars and the beneficial owner. The Samiti had also secured a franchise from a prominent school chain.
In related cases, several other immovable properties and benami businesses were found to be beneficially owned by Sharma but held or run in the names of his close associates. These, too, were provisionally attached.
Earlier, 52 kg of gold and cash of Rs 11 crore were seized from an abandoned vehicle in Medori village in December 2024, which authorities allege is also linked to Sharma.
