Rani Mukerji.

Pune, Nov 14  The district collector of Ahmednagar, Umakant Dangat, Wednesday ordered an enquiry into the reported purchase of agricultural land by Bollywood actress Rani Mukerji.

Dangat told IANS: "Rani Mukerji's father had come here a few days ago to have the land registered in their names but the land was already allotted for farming purposes."

The district's sub divisional officer has sent an inquiry notice to Rani with respect to the land, which she had allegedly purchased from an agent named Sampat More in village Nimba Korchali, about 400 km from Mumbai.

Dangat said the size of the land is 11 guntas (one fourth of an acre). However, the cost of the land hasn't been determined yet.

Rani reportedly paid Rs 33 lakh in December 2005 for the farmland near Shirdi in Maharashtra, not realizing the land is non transferable.

She even registered the sale deed paying Rs 1.32 lakh stamp duty in the district tehsildar office. The tehsildar now says ownership of the land cannot be transferred to Rani since it is government land leased out to a farmer.

The deal has been scrapped by the district collector.

"They should have inquired before getting into a transaction," said Dangat.

The sub divisional officer will scrutinize the records of the parties involved and pass an order thereafter.

Sampat More is now reportedly willing to return the money to Rani. The land was purchased in the name of Rani's father Ram Mukherjee.

Seventeen other people in the area have been duped in land cases in a similar manner.