Crime Today News
The Supreme Court on Monday sought the response of the municipal authorities in Maharashtra’s Malvan to a contempt petition filed by a man whose rented scrap shop and home, made of tin sheets, were bulldozed in February after his son was accused of shouting “anti-India slogans”, reported The Indian Express.
The boy had allegedly shouted the slogans on February 23 after the Indian cricket team defeated Pakistan in a Champions Trophy match. On February 24, the municipal council demolished the family’s shop and home, claiming the structure to be unauthorised. In the process, they also damaged a vehicle owned by the family.
There are no provisions in Indian law that allow for the demolition of property as a punitive measure, but the practice has become commonplace in Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states.
On November 13, the Supreme Court held the practice of demolishing properties of persons accused of crimes to be illegal. It said that due process must be followed before removing allegedly illegal encroachments.
In his petition, the boy’s father, Kitabulla Hamidulla Khan, argued that the demolition was carried out under “political pressure” without prior notice and violated the Supreme Court’s November order, according to The Indian Express.
The action amounted to “egregious contempt” of the top court’s directives, Hindustan Times cited the petition as stating.
“The action of the civic authorities is arbitrary, illegal and malafide,” the petition added. “It is relevant to note that in the process of demolition, the municipal officers also damaged a vehicle of the petitioner.”
Khan also asserted that the events of February 23 were in stark contrast to the allegations made against him and his family. He claimed that two men near a liquor shop attacked his son while he had stopped to buy chips after returning from the mosque. Later that night, a mob arrived at their home and assaulted his family, The Indian Express reported.
He also highlighted that the bulldozer action had resulted in a loss of around Rs 15 lakh to his family, for which demanded compensation from the authorities.
The court has listed the matter for further hearing after four weeks, PTI reported.
On February 24, the boy and his family were booked on a complaint by a resident of Malvan’s Hadi village. The residents of the area had also organised a motorcycle rally to demand action against the Muslim family.
The complainant alleged that a group of boys were celebrating India’s win over Pakistan in the match on February 23 and one of them allegedly shouted “anti-India” slogans. This triggered an altercation with the residents of the area.
They were booked under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita pertaining to promoting enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion, punishment for assault or use of criminal force, joint criminal liability for acts in furtherance of a common criminal intention and imputations or assertions prejudicial to national integration.
After the family’s home and shop were demolished, Kudal MLA Nilesh Rane said that “for now we have destroyed his scrap business” and vowed to “ensure he is eventually thrown out of the district”.
The Malvan town is part of the Kudal Assembly constituency. Rane belongs to the Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led faction of the Shiv Sena.
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