New Delhi. In a significant remark on the ‘bulldozer action’ in Uttar Pradesh, the Supreme Court on Thursday said the demolition should be done as per due process of law. The apex court made the remarks while directing the Uttar Pradesh government to file a detailed affidavit within three days on the plea of Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind. Issuing notice to the state, a bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice (CJI) NV Ramana orally remarked that demolition cannot be a retributive measure. The top court said, “Everything should look fair, we expect the authorities to act only in accordance with the law. Ensure safety so that no untoward incident happens.”
The matter will be heard further next week. During the hearing, advocate Chandra Udai Singh, appearing for the petitioner, strongly argued that a community is being targeted and the process of demolition is “horrific”. He said that the country had never seen such a situation even during the Emergency. He argued that the notices were not issued before the demolition citing Section 27 of the UP Urban Planning and Development Act. Further, the lawyer claimed that the notice was issued without a period of 15 days as per the law. Senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for the state of Uttar Pradesh, argued that the media was doing unnecessary publicity on the issue. He also pointed to notices that were issued long before the violence, mentioning incidents of demolition.
He also argued that people are also trying to take advantage of this issue to protect their illegal properties and are seeing these destructions by linking them to a particular community. In the petition, against the backdrop of the ongoing controversy over the campaign and remarks regarding the Prophet, the Jamiat Ulama sought directions to initiate action against officials who allegedly violated the country’s enacted law and municipal laws. responsible for destroying it. The plea said that the present situation is more worrying, as the Supreme Court had already ordered a stay on the demolition being carried out in North West Delhi as a punitive measure under similar circumstances. It has argued, emphasizing, “this is in violation of the orders of the Supreme Court.”
Incidents of violence and slogan-shouting after prayers were reported in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj and Saharanpur on Friday (June 10), when people started protesting against the remarks of former BJP spokespersons on the Prophet. The bulldozer, which has become a symbol of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s crackdown on anti-social elements, reached the residence of Mohammad Javed alias Javed Pump, identified as the main conspirator of the violence that broke out in the city on June 10, on Sunday. Prayagraj Development Authority had issued notice for demolition of a house allegedly built without necessary permission.