On Friday, the Supreme Court announced it will review a case that accuses the Sambhal authorities of ignoring its orders about demolishing properties. Justices B R Gavai and Augustine George Masih agreed to hear the case in a week after the lawyer for the petitioner, Mohammed Ghayoor, requested more time due to personal issues.
Ghayoor’s plea claims that the authorities violated a Supreme Court ruling from November 2024. This ruling said that before demolishing any property, authorities must give a warning and a chance for the owner to respond within 15 days. However, the Sambhal authorities reportedly destroyed part of Ghayoor’s property on January 10-11 without any notice.
Even though Ghayoor and his family had all the right documents and plans for their property, the authorities went ahead and demolished it. The plea argues that this action was completely wrong and ignored the Supreme Court’s orders.
Ghayoor’s plea targets the Sambhal district magistrate and other officials. It highlights that the Supreme Court’s November 2024 ruling required authorities to follow specific guidelines when demolishing properties. The plea insists that the authorities showed no respect for the law or the rights of people.
Along with asking for contempt action against the authorities, Ghayoor’s plea also wants to stop them from letting anyone else use or build on the property and to keep things as they were on January 11.
The Supreme Court previously stated that demolitions could not happen without a proper notice unless the structures were illegally built on public land, like roads or rivers. The court emphasized that they would not allow authorities to act unfairly and should follow proper legal procedures. No demolitions should take place without first giving notice, which should follow local laws or allow 15 days for a response.
This ruling came after people pushed for clearer rules on property demolitions.
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