Haldwani (Uttarakhand): Over 4,000 families in Haldwani, some living there since more than 70 years, are at the risk of losing their homes as the local administration prepares eviction drive following a High Court order.
Local officials said they will serve eviction notices to the people living in what they claim "unauthorised colonies" near Haldwani Railway Station, giving then seven days’ time to vacate the "encroached Railway land".
The move followed the Uttarakhand High Court order. The High Court, while hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) worker, ordered the evacuation of "encroached" railway land in the Banbhoolpura area near Haldwani Railway Station in Uttarakhand.
In its order, the court also asked the administration to give notices to the residents one week in advance to vacate it. Consequently, the local officials are preparing to serve notices to Haldwani residents starting Sunday, January 01, 2023.
Local residents however have challenged the HC order in Supreme Court claiming the said land has been wrongly marked by the Indian Railways as encroached.
According to Nainital district officials, a total of 4,365 families, majority of them Muslims, are living on 29 acres along 2.2 km strip of railway land. There are also some 20 mosques and 9 temples.
“There are also a number of government schools built in the same area. The government has also built water tanks and provided other facilities. If this land is encroached, how the schools, water tanks and other government structures got permission?” local residents asked.
“There are some families living here since three generations, some since more than 70 years and some came here even before the independence”, they claimed.
Meanwhile, protests against the eviction drive that began with candle-light march last week intensified on Saturday with hundreds of residents, including women and children, camping on roads demanding the local administration to refrain from taking any action as the matter is pending a hearing in the Supreme Court of India.
“We are hopeful that the Supreme Court will put a stay on the HC order, and a just and fair order will be passed in due court”, a local resident said.
Following the court order, joint teams of railway and revenue officials conducted a drone survey of the encroached area on Thursday. They started demarcating the encroached areas even as the local residents protested against the move.
The Congress has opposed the eviction and accused the state government of not arguing the case properly in court and making excuses later. The state government however said it had no say on the said property belonging to the railways.
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