SDMC Conducts Demolition Drive in Mangolpuri’s New Friends Colony Following the Shaheen Bagh Uprising
*Paromita Das
The civic body has brought in bulldozers in the New Friends Colony area and Mangolpuri to carry out an anti-encroachment drive as scheduled, a day after the Supreme Court refused to grant a stay on the South Delhi Municipal Corporation’s demolition drive amid massive protests by locals.
On Monday, hundreds of people, including women, protested the BJP-ruled SDMC’s drive as bulldozers rolled into Shaheen Bagh in the presence of a large number of police officers, even though the civic body team was forced to return without carrying out the exercise.
AAP MLA Amantullah Khan arrived at the protest site and expressed strong resentment against the SDMC’s demolition drive, claiming that he had personally inspected the entire area and spoken to every official, including the traffic police, and that all illegal encroachments had been removed 3-4 days prior.
Following that, the Delhi Police filed an FIR against Khan and his supporters for’refusing’ to allow SDMC officials to carry out the proposed anti-encroachment drive in Shaheen Bagh.
‘The FIR was registered on the complaint of SDMC under Indian Penal Code Sections 186, obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions, 353, assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty, and 34 acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention,’ DCP (southeast), Esha Pandey, said.
The Supreme Court refused to hear a CPI(M) petition challenging South Delhi Municipal Corporation’s demolition drive in Shaheen Bagh, saying it could not interfere with the anti-encroachment drive at the request of a political party. A bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and B R Gavai directed the party to file an application with the Delhi High Court.
“Why is the CPI(M) submitting a petition? What fundamental right is being infringed upon? Certainly not at the request of political parties. This is not the proper platform. You go to the Supreme Court, “the bench stated. At the outset, senior advocate P V Surendranath, who was representing the petitioner, stated that the petition was filed in the public interest and that there was no ‘party interest’ involved in the matter.
Encroachment drives were planned in SDMC areas after Delhi BJP chief Adesh Gupta wrote to the mayor of the party-ruled civic body on April 20 requesting that encroachment by “Rohingyas, Bangladeshis, and anti-social elements” be removed. Drives will be held on May 11 in Meharchand Market, Lodhi Colony near Sai Baba Mandir, and near JLN Metro station.
About 35 prominent citizens had written to the Delhi government and municipal corporations, pleading with them to halt the ‘illegal and unlawful’ demolitions in the national capital immediately. The letter was signed by economist Jayati Ghosh, members of the All India Democratic Women’s Association Malini Bhattacharya and Mariam Dhawale, social activist Anjali Bhardwaj, and All India Progressive Women’s Association member Kavita Krishnan.
They wrote to Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, saying it was ‘appalling’ that bulldozers hired by civic authorities were targeting temporary structures critical to people’s livelihoods. They claim that recent visits and subsequent statements by the mayor of South Delhi Municipal Corporation about areas earmarked for future demolition point to the’real and present danger’ that the actions in Jahangirpuri and Kalyanpuri have caused over the last month.
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