SC to hear Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind plea against demolitions in Uttar Pradesh

A vacation bench had issued notice to the state, advising it to follow due procedures

ITDC INDIA EPRESS/ITDC NEWS R The Supreme Court will today hear a plea filed by Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, who argued against the demolition of houses carried out by the Uttar Pradesh government in the wake of riots against Prophet remarks. A vacation bench had issued notice to the state, advising it to follow due procedures while carrying out the demolition exercise.

The Uttar Pradesh government had earlier told the Supreme Court that demolitions of illegal structures were carried out by its Kanpur and Prayagraj municipal bodies as per law and were not related to punishing the accused involved in violent protests following remarks by two BJP leaders on Prophet Mohammed.

In response to the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind affidavit, the state government said the demolitions referred to in the interlocutory applications have been carried out by the local development authority, which are statutory autonomous bodies, independent of the state administration, as per law as part of their routine effort against unauthorised/illegal constructions and encroachments, in accordance with the UP Urban Planning and Development Act, 1972.

It said that none of the actual affected parties, if any, have approached this court concerning the lawful demolition action. "It is humbly submitted that in so far as taking action against the persons accused in rioting, the state government is taking stringent steps against them in accordance with a completely different set of statutes namely—CrPC, UP gangster, and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, 1986 and Rules, 2021, Prevention of Public Property Damages Act and Uttar Pradesh Recovery of Damages to Public and Private Property Act, 2020 and Rules, 2021," it said.

It pointed out that the factum of construction being illegal has also been admitted by the two builders in Kanpur. It pointed out that the top court in a recent writ petition filed by a political party concerning the alleged demolitions in Shaheen Bagh, noted that only the affected party and not political parties should come forward and allowed withdrawal of the petition with liberty to approach the High Court.

Furthermore, it is submitted that even if any such alleged demolition action is to be challenged, the same is to be done by the affected party before the High Court, and not this court, the state government said, adding that it is taking strong exception to the attempt by the petitioners to name the highest constitutional functionaries of the State and falsely colour the local development authority's lawful actions as extra-legal punitive measures against accused persons, targeting any particular religious community.