New Delhi: The Supreme Court will Thursday hear the plea by Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind seeking appropriate direction from the Uttar Pradesh government to ensure that no further demolitions are carried out without following due process of law. In the plea, moved against the backdrop of the ongoing row over comments on the Prophet and subsequent demolition drives, the Jamiat Ulama sought directions to initiate action against those officials concerned responsible for the houses allegedly demolished in violation of the rule of law and the municipal laws enacted by the state.
“Today, the petitioners have filed two interim petitions in the Supreme Court of India. The apex court on April 21 issued notices to Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, and Delhi, including the state of Uttar Pradesh, seeking their response to the bulldozer demolition operation. A division bench of Justice AS Bopanna and Justice Vikaram Nath will hear the matter tomorrow (Thursday) and senior advocate Nitya Ramakrishnan will appear for Jamiat,” said a statement released Wednesday by the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind.
Also read: Bulldozer row: Jamiat approaches SC against UP demolitions
The plea stated that the present situation is more alarming as the Supreme Court had already ordered a stay of demolitions that were being carried out as a punitive measure in northwest Delhi in similar circumstances. “It is a violation of the orders of the Supreme Court”, the statement said.
Incidents of violence and slogan-shouting were reported Friday (June 10) from Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj and Saharanpur. After prayers people began protesting against former BJP spokespersons’ remarks on the Prophet.
Sunday, bulldozers, now a symbol of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s crackdown on anti-social elements, reached the residence of Mohammad Javed, aka Javed Pump, who has been identified as the main conspirator behind the violence that erupted in the city June 10.
The Prayagraj Development Authority had served notice to demolish the house that was allegedly built without getting the requisite permissions. However, it was later alleged that the house was in the name of Javed’s wife and had all the requisite documents.
