The Supreme Court, in its landmark judgement on “instant bulldozder justice”, has framed strict pan-India guidelines for demolition of properties. The guidelines say, no demolition of any alleged structure will be carried out without 15-day prior notice to the owner, both by registered post and pasting it on the outer walls of the property. The time period will tick from the date of receipt of notice by the owner. Notice shall delineate nature of unauthorised construction, specify violations, grounds of demolition and fix a date for personal hearing for the owner before a designated authority. The final order for demolition will not be implemented for 15 days to allow the aggrieved person to approach the courts.
Demolition must be videographed and the authorities will have to send a report to the civic authorities. Violations of guidelines will lead to initiation of contempt proceedings in addition to prosecution. Officers concerned will be asked to restore the demolished structure to its original state at their personal cost and they will also be liable to pay damages.
One must understand two major points relating to the judgement. One, the apex court has not imposed a “ban” on use of bulldozers for razing illegal properties. Only guidelines have been issued that must be followed strictly. Two, provision for giving 15-day prior notice was already there in the rule book. There was also provision to hear the accused and they had the right to appeal. What the apex court on Wednesday decided was to ensure that the bulldozers are not used in a hurry, and a transparent procedure must be followed.
The implications now will be that if any heinous crime takes place, bulldozers will not be used to raze the properties of the criminal immediately. Fifteen days’ time has been given. As far as bulldozer actions prior to the apex court verdict are concerned, I have some data. These data say, there were more than 2,000 bulldozer actions since 2017 in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Maharashtra and Gujarat. But the biggest hue and cry was raised over demolitions done during UP CM Yogi Adityanath’s rule.
This was because Yogi’s administration had razed the ill-acquired properties of top gangster leaders and rioters like Mukhtar Ansari, Atiq Ahmed, Vikas Dubey, Vijay Mishra and others. Ill-gotten properties of mafia dons were razed and homes were built for the poor on those plots. The Supreme Court verdict has nothing to do with Yogi Adityanath’s government. UP government was not a party to the case which was before the Supreme Court. The apex court was hearing a petition filed by Jamiat Ulama-e- Hind against North Delhi Municipal Corporation and others. But when political leaders started reacting to the Supreme Court verdict, the UP government had to respond.
A spokesperson from UP government welcomed the verdict as a significant step forward and said, “this ruling will increase criminals’ fear of the aw, and it will make easier for the administration to keep a leash on mafia elements and organised professional criminals. The first requirement of good governance is rule of law. The rule of law applies to everyone.” The implication is quite clear. Yogi’s government is not going to tone down its drive against gangsters, rioters and criminal elements.
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