Dying 82-year-old Madhya Pradesh doctor’s video haunts ‘heir’ in Rs 60-crore land row

JABALPUR: In a trembling voice from her hospital bed days before her death, 82-year-old Dr Hemlata Shrivastava made one final plea. The frail octogenarian doctor alleged she had been deceived into signing away her lifetime's earnings.

The video, which quickly went viral and prompted official action, has since become the centrepiece of a bitter Rs 60-crore property dispute -- one that now returns to haunt her chosen heir even after her passing.Dr Shrivastava was unwell for some time and was admitted to hospital about two weeks ago. Her final rites were performed at Gwarighat crematorium by her sister and members of the Gayatri Parivar, amid tight police security, reflecting the tension that built up around the case.At the centre of the controversy is around 25,000 sq ft in the upscale Wright Town area. Following the death of her son in 2022 and her husband in Dec 2024, Dr Shrivastava executed a series of registered gift deeds earlier this year. On Jan 14, 2026, she transferred 11,000 sq ft to her late son's friend, Dr Sumit Jain, and his wife, Prachi Jain. Six days later, on Jan 20, she donated the remaining 14,000 sq ft to the Gayatri Parivar. The property is estimated to be worth nearly Rs 60 crore. What appeared on paper as voluntary donations soon spiralled into a major dispute. While undergoing treatment at the medical college hospital, Dr Shrivastava recorded a video accusing Dr Jain and his wife of fraudulently getting the land transferred. She alleged that she never intended to donate the property of her own free will, and claimed she was misled.

Around the same time, complaints, including allegations of her abduction, also surfaced.