HC stays Patna demolition drive, next hearing on July 6

The court, in its order, said the presence of Patna district magistrate and managing director of Bihar State Housing Board (BSHB) was required in the matter

The Patna high court Monday stayed the demolition drive in Nepali Nagar area of Patna with immediate effect and said it will hear the matter again on July 6, an advocate associated with the case said.

At the demolition site at Nepali Nagar in Patna on Monday. (Santosh Kumar/HT Photo)

Hearing a petition filed by residents, the bench of Justice Sandip Kumar passed the order and asked the additional advocate general (AAG-2) Md Khurshid Alam to communicate it to the collector, said counsel for the Nepali Nagar residents, Basant Choudhary, who mentioned the cases relate to demolition of houses situated in Nepali Nagar/Rajiv Nagar.

The court, in its order, said the presence of Patna district magistrate and managing director of Bihar State Housing Board (BSHB) was required in the matter. “The court waited for them till 4:40 pm but they have not been able to reach the court despite messages. The court cannot wait for the respondents indefinitely,” the bench observed.

“It has been submitted by the counsel for the petitioners that demolition has been ordered without giving personal notice to each and every house owner and a general notice was given in the area and thereafter, an order was passed for demolition of the houses in question... The proceeding has not been initiated by the owner of the land i.e. Bihar State Housing Board, but by the circle officer and his order is appealable before the collector but the collector himself is supervising the demolition,” the three-page order states.

On Sunday, locals settled in the area for years and paying regular municipal tax and electricity bills clashed with the police when a demolition drive was launched to free the land claimed by the Bihar state Housing Board. The protests continued on Monday when bulldozers reached the area amid a strong police deployment.

Local BJP MLA Sanjeev Chourasia has also been vocal in support of the residents against the decision of his own government and the BSHB, which also comes under the urban development and housing department headed by deputy chief minister Tar Kishore Prasad.

Left parties had also opposed the demolition. “Residents have Aadhar and ration cards and their names are registered in the voter list. Government funds have been used for construction of roads and drains. It is ironical that the district administration views the residents as illegal occupants. It smacks of a conspiracy of land mafia in connivance with some officials. The government should find an alternative,” said CPM district secretary Manoj Kumar Chandravanshi.