No demolitions in Bahraich until Wednesday, Uttar Pradesh government tells SC

The Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday assured the Supreme Court that the proposed demolition of properties in Bahraich will not be carried out until Wednesday as the court is due to take up an application alleging the move was punitive and linked to the October 13 communal violence.
A bench of justices Bhushan R Gavai and KV Viswanathan heard an urgent mention of the application of three Bahraich residents challenging the Public Works Department (PWD)’s notices for the removal of properties near a road.
Additional solicitor general KM Nataraj, who appeared for the state government, informed the bench the matter was pending in the Allahabad high court. “We would not do anything,” said Nataraj when the bench asked him if any proposed action could be deferred until Wednesday.
Senior advocate CU Singh, who mentioned the application on behalf of the petitioners, said the residence of one of the applicants was being targeted as some of his family members were accused in the communal violence during a Durga idol procession which left a person dead.
Singh said the proposed action violated the Supreme Court’s September 17 order staying any demolition of properties of people accused of any crime. The order specified that such protection would not meant for properties encroaching on public land, public space, or abutting water bodies or railway lines.
The bench said if they want to risk flouting the court order, it is their choice. It reminded Singh that it will not interfere if the constructions are on the road. The bench noted that the high court had given 15 days to the Bahraich residents to respond to the PWD notices pasted on their properties on October 18.
The application of the residents was moved in the batch of Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind-led pleas challenging the arbitrary demolition of properties of people named in criminal cases.
It said the trouble in Bahraich started over objections to the loud music during the procession. The plea said one of the members of the procession climbed on top of a house, tore a green flag, and waived a saffron one. The man was shot dead triggering the communal violence for the next two days.
The Bahraich residents moved the Supreme Court through advocate Mrigank Prabhakar, saying PWD issued the notices saying their properties were “illegal” as they were situated within 60 feet from the Kundasar-Mahsi-Nanpara road categorised as the “main district road”. They argued it was evident that the proposed demolition was punitive. “The defence of unauthorised construction is being used as a ruse to carry out punitive demolition and also to illegally overcome the interim protective orders passed by this court on September 17,” the application said. It added that some of the properties existed for 70 years. The petition linked the demolition notices to communal violence.
The Supreme Court in its September 17 order specified that demolition cannot be initiated just because a person is an accused. It added a due process of the law should be followed if the property is illegal. The court proposed passing pan-India guidelines while reserving its order on October 1.
The Bahraich residents said the PWD notices were contemptuous as they did not specify the relevant provisions under which demolition was proposed. They added the short notice of three days to convince the authorities that their constructions were legal has been done without court permission as required as per the September 17 order.