The Supreme Court on Tuesday stayed for one day the demolition notices issued to 23 shopkeepers in Uttar Pradesh’s Bahraich district, Live Law reported.
The state government responded by assuring the court that it would not act on the notices till Wednesday.
The Public Works Department had served notices to 23 residents in Maharajganj village after inspecting their homes and establishments on Friday. Twenty of them are Muslims.
They were asked to vacate their properties in three days as per provisions of the Road Control Act, 1964.
One of the shops that received an eviction notice belongs to 62-year-old jeweller Abdul Hameed, who was allegedly involved in the killing of a 22-year-old named Ram Gopal Mishra last Sunday.
The incident led to riots in Bahraich. A total of 104 people have been arrested in connection with the violence.
In response to a petition challenging the notices, the Supreme Court cautioned the state’s Bharatiya Janata Party government against carrying out any demolition works in violation of its past orders.
On September 17, the Supreme Court stayed all demolitions in the country until further notice without its permission. In a subsequent hearing, the court said: “We will clarify demolition can’t be carried out merely because someone is an accused or convict.”
“If they [Uttar Pradesh government] want to take risk of flouting our order, it’s their choice,” said the bench of Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan on Tuesday.
The Allahabad High Court on Sunday granted 15 days to the 23 residents to respond to the demolition notices. The High Court is scheduled to hear a plea filed in connection with the demolition notices on Wednesday.
There are no provisions in Indian law that allow for the demolition of property as a punitive measure. Nevertheless, the practice has become commonplace mainly in states ruled by the BJP.
Authorities in four BJP-ruled states and one Aam Aadmi Party-governed state punitively bulldozed 128 structures, mostly belonging to Muslims, between April 2022 and June 2022, human rights group Amnesty International said in a report in February.
Another FIR filed based on complaint by BJP MLA
The police in Bahraich have registered another FIR related to the communal violence, bringing the number of cases to 12, officials said on Monday.
The latest case, based on a complaint by Sureshwar Singh, the BJP MLA from Mahasi. The FIR names seven individuals including the Hindutva party’s city youth wing chief Arpit Srivastava, for rioting and other charges.
Singh has alleged that Srivastava led a mob that attacked his group on October 13 when Mishra’s body was being taken to a mortuary. This led to clashes in which stones were thrown and guns fired.
Singh urged the police to review security camera footage to identify more rioters involved in the clashes.
The FIR, registered on October 18, names Srivastava, Anuj Singh Raikwar, Shubham Mishra, Kushmendra Chaudhary, Manish Chandra Shukla, Pundrik Pandey and Sudhanshu Singh Rana.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!