Nuh admin demolishes 50 properties of ‘suspects’ involved in violence

Officials said they received orders from Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar to take action against illegal constructions

The Nuh administration, with the help of police, on Friday demolished over 50 houses in 10 localities that allegedly belonged to, or were used by, suspects involved in the communal clash on Monday, which left six dead and 70 injured, said police.

An earthmover demolishes houses at Nalhar village in Nuh, in Gurugram on Friday. (Parveen Kumar/HT)

Police said the houses either belong to the suspects or were used by them for pelting stones, storing weapons, and firing at Hindu devotees who were returning from a Shiva temple in Nalhar after offering prayers.

Nuh deputy commissioner Prashant Panwar on Friday said they received orders from Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar to take action against illegal constructions and also anti-social elements involved in the violence.

“Anti-social activities will not be tolerated in the district under any circumstance. Strict action will be taken against those who will try to disrupt peace and harmony. We are keeping a strict vigil on those involved in illegal construction and anti-social activities,”he said.

Officials said they have launched a campaign against illegal construction, anti-social elements and encroachers.

Officials said a five acre plot that belonged to the forest department behind Nalhar Shiva temple was cleared of encroachments.

Nuh Congress MLA Aftab Ahmed, said,“These allegations are rubbish and unverified. The government is doing such cheap acts to hide its failure and to gain political support. On Friday, about a dozen people of Nalhar village told me that the local administration razed their houses after serving them backdated notices. Earlier, they arrested innocent people and now they are demolishing houses and shops of poor people, which is illegal and unconstitutional. We oppose this and will fight every legal battle for justice,” he said.

Anees Ahmad, a resident of Nuh, said his house was demolished for no reason. “We do not have any kind of involvement in the violence but we have been targeted for no reason. We were given notices that were backdated,” he said.

Narender Bijarniya, who took charge as superintendent of police on Friday, said the action was part of a special campaign launched by the government against miscreants involved in the violence on Monday.

“The houses that were built close to the temple in Nalhar, which was the soft target, and the houses that were built on main roads have been demolished,” he said.

On Thursday, over 250 shanties built on Haryana Shahari Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) land in Nuh’s Tauru area were bulldozed. Police said the action was taken after they identified violence suspects among Rohingya refugees and their camps were found to be encroachments.

“The immigrants had illegally occupied HSVP land. In addition to this, initial investigation has revealed that they were found involved in the violence. In such a situation, we bulldozed the illegal occupation,” the SP said.

A total of 141 people have been arrested in Nuh so far in connection with the violence. Combing exercises have been conducted in villages Mewli, Shikarpur, Jalalpur and Singar. A team of cyber experts has collected CCTV footage from along the yatra route to recreate the sequence of events.