A probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has revealed that Jawad Ahmed Siddiqui, the chairman and founder of Al Falah University, allegedly acquired land in south east Delhi’s Madanpur Khadar by forging documents in the names of at least five dead people who previously owned the land, sources said on Friday.

The Haryana-based university has come under the scanner after three doctors working there were allegedly found to be part of the “white-collar terror module” linked to the November 10 Red Fort car blast that killed 13 people.

Siddiqui, who was arrested last week on money-laundering charges, is in ED custody.

The agency has so far found several land parcels in Delhi acquired by Sidiqqui’s private company, Tarbiya Education Foundation, through forged powers of attorney that were executed decades after the death of the owners in some cases.

“During the investigation, we examined all the financial details and found that a forged General Power of Attorney (GPA) was used to sell land in the names of dead owners, and it was ultimately acquired by Jawad Ahmad Siddiqui’s Tarbia Education Foundation,” said an agency official.

“A probe has also revealed that the land in Khasra No. 792, Madanpur Khadar, was acquired through fraud by Tarbia Education Foundation. The deed records a sale of land in Khasra No. 792 (and related land) in favour of Tarbia Education Foundation for a consideration of ₹75,00,000,” he said.

The ED has found that the GPA is false and fabricated. “The signatures/thumb impressions of the deceased are forged. The land was transferred based on forged GPA and the ultimate beneficiary is Tarbia Education Foundation, which purchased the land on the basis of forged GPA by the sellers,” the official said.

The examination of documents has revealed that a man identified as Vinod Kumar held the power of attorney for at least five landowners, who were dead by the time the power of attorney was registered on January 7, 2004, according to the official.

“The agency has found that one landowner, Nathu, died on January 1, 1972, followed by Harbans Singh on April 27, 1991; Harkesh on June 12, 1993; Shiv Dayal on January 22, 1998; and Jay Ram on October 15, 1998. The date of GPA registration of all these people in favour of Vinod Kumar is January 7, 2004, and the land was sold to Tarbia on June 27, 2013,” the official said.

The GPA registration carried the names and signatures or thumb impressions of the deceased landowners. “A GPA said to be signed by a dead person has no legal authority, but despite this, a registered sale deed dated June 27, 2013, was executed,” he said.

Siddiqui was arrested on November 18, hours after multiple teams of the ED conducted searches at 25 locations across Delhi and Faridabad linked to the Al Falah Group in connection with alleged fraudulent accreditation claims and financial irregularities by its flagship institutions.

Delhi police have also registered two FIRs on a complaint by the University Grants Commission. One FIR alleges cheating while the other invokes charges of
forgery. The Association of Indian Universities has revoked Al Falah University’s membership.

Earlier, the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) had issued a notice asking the private university to explain why the UGC should not be asked to withdraw its recognition. The university had claimed on its website that its Al Falah School of Engineering and Technology and Al Falah School of Education and Training had “A” grades from the NAAC.