Allahabad HC stops UP’s demolition drive linked to ‘I Love Muhammed’
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Meerut: The Allahabad High Court stopped the Uttar Pradesh administration from demolishing 27 houses in Bareilly's Shahabad area over the “I Love Muhammad” row. The court said that no home can be demolished without due process and no coercive action should be taken without the competent authority passing a final order, Times of India reported.
The court of justices Ajit Kumar and Satyavir Singh issued an order which read, "Each petitioner must file an individual reply within four weeks, and the competent authority (civic body) must decide the matter within two months by issuing a reasoned, speaking order after granting a personal hearing. Until then — or for three months, whichever is earlier — no demolition may take place. The order was to be communicated to Bareilly officials."
After residents received notices on October 9, which declared their houses illegal and ordered them to vacate and raze their structures within five days, they approached the high court. According to the petitioners' argument, the Bareilly Municipal Corporation (BMC) collected taxes for years, contradicting its own claim on its legality.
The October 9 notices claimed that the 27 homes were built illegally on municipal land and warned them that FIRs and recovery of demolition costs may follow.
The authorities had initiated a wave of demolitions soon after the “I Love Muhammad” protest, and the violence followed. They carried out the destruction, claiming violations, particularly linking to the Muslim cleric Tauqeer Raza and his supporters.
Meanwhile, the BJP-ruled state and local authorities told the court that since replies had already been filed, the matter could be resolved through the regular show-cause process, according to Maktoob Media.
