MP Cop Suspended Over Extortion, Land Grab Charges in Murder Case Probe
Madhya Pradesh CM suspends Katni CSP Neha Pachisia over extortion and land grab allegations linked to a murder case investigation.
Neha Pachisia, a Madhya Pradesh police officer who once worked as an air hostess before joining the state police service, has been suspended by Chief Minister Mohan Yadav over allegations of extortion and land grabbing.
Pachisia, currently serving as City Superintendent of Police (CSP) in Katni, is accused of demanding Rs 15 lakh from the family of an accused in a murder case. When the family said they could not pay, she allegedly forced the transfer of the accused's father's land to an associate at a fraction of its market value.
An FIR has been registered against Pachisia and two others — Maroof Ahmed Hanafi and Kshitij Raj Barapatre — under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) related to extortion, cheating, criminal conspiracy, forgery, and misuse of official position.
According to the complaint, the family of Akash Lodhi, arrested in April for the murder of a tribal man and released on bail in July, was pressured to sell 2.15 hectares of land in Kanhwara. The land had a guideline value of over Rs 82 lakh but was registered for just Rs 18.20 lakh. Investigators found that Hanafi, named as the buyer, lacked funds for the purchase. On April 15, the day of registration, Rs 15 lakh was credited to his account — Rs 10 lakh from a firm called Shine Partners and Rs 5 lakh from Barapatre.
Jabalpur Range IG Pramod Verma said the allegations relate to a murder case Pachisia was investigating. The inquiry also recorded statements from over 10 people, and Pachisia appeared before the inquiry officer.
Chief Minister Yadav, in an official statement on Friday, called the matter "extremely serious" and said negligence or misuse of official position in law-and-order matters would not be tolerated. He ordered an impartial investigation and strict action against those found responsible.
This is not the first controversy for Pachisia this year. In July, she faced allegations of demanding Rs 30,000 from a transporter during a vehicle check, leading to her driver's suspension and her being relieved of charge of three police stations.