About 450 acres, declared surplus after the 1972's Ceiling Act, were meant for poor, but allegedly usurped by well-heeled influential people in connivance with the revenue authorities.

The records show that former landlord Major Harinder Singh, who was the owner of the entire land before it was declared surplus, had only daughters. He adopted Gurpal Singh, son of one of his daughters, Yadvinder Kaur, who became a major shareholder in the agriculture land. Jai Kaur, daughter of Capt Amarinder Singh, is married to Gurpal Singh, an industrialist and businessman in Delhi who also runs stud farms in UP and Rajasthan.

Gurpal, son-in-law of the former CM, is one of the influential persons whose transactions related to the distribution and sale of agriculture land to his relatives are under investigations. The land that should have been allotted to various Scheduled Castes and poor as per the law was grabbed by the family members and sold in violation of norms. Most of the allotments were made in 1980 and 1990s.

"Yes, all the transactions carried out during the last two decades are under the scanner," said Deputy Commissioner KS Pannu.

The transactions, which include selling of land to fictitious names, had come to the fore when data for allotment to Schedule Castes and poor from the government's surplus pool was being collected.

The actual claimants have been running from pillar to post for their rights, while influential people, living abroad and outside the state, got the land allotted to their names.

A preliminary inquiry into the allotment scandal was conducted by Ajnala SDM TS Sandhu. He submitted his initial probe report to Deputy Commissioner KS Pannu last week, highlighting discrepancies.

Pannu said a full-fledged probe was on and records were being summoned for further investigations.

Meanwhile, Capt Amarinder could not be contacted for comments, but sources close to him confirmed his relations with Gurpal.

Gurpal was also not available for comments, but his aides said he was aware of the ongoing probe and would cooperate in the investigations.

Apart from him, various other land registrations done in the name of some persons settled abroad were also under probe. "The truth would be out once the inquiry is complete," he said, adding that it would take some time before the revenue records were studied thoroughly by the officials of the probe team.