Goa, June 5 -- More than a month after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) uncovered a massive Rs.1,600 crore land scam in Goa, Rohan Harmalkar, alleged mastermind and leader of the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP)-was arrested Tuesday night for his key role in the scheme. Harmalkar, who ran as an independent candidate in the 2022 Goa Assembly elections before joining the MGP in 2024, is accused of orchestrating a complex network that illegally acquired and sold vast stretches of neglected land, primarily in prime areas of Bardez taluka such as Anjuna, Arpora, and Assagao.

The ED investigation revealed that Harmalkar and his associates manipulated land records, forged ownership documents, impersonated rightful heirs, and tampered with r...