HC stays eviction of marble traders from Sikanderpur

All but 34 of the 83 marble traders moved to the new location. These 34 continued to operate their businesses from sectors 33-34 and Sikanderpur, against the agreement with Huda, resulting in the matter reaching the HC.

The 34 marble traders who have shops in Sikanderpur and were sent eviction notices by the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) last Saturday, will be able to continue to work out of the same locations as the Punjab and Haryana High Court (HC) has put a stay in the matter.

The marble shops are located along the length of MG Road just after Aya Nagar on the Delhi-gurugram border. The land here is of prime value. (HT Photo)

The next hearing is scheduled for December 7.

Chief Justice Krishna Murari in his judgment, a copy of which is with the Hindustan Times, on Tuesday stated that “till the next date of listing, no further action shall be taken in pursuance to the impugned notice…(eviction notices sent by the MCG)”, adding that the all petitions of the Sikanderpur Marble Market Association were dismissed on August 31 only because the association members had failed to appear on the day of the hearing.

Further, the court observed that though the applications for relocating these traders by the then Haryana urban development authority, now HSVP, to sectors 33-34 have been moved, “the process is likely to take some time before it could be listed for consideration and in the meantime if the petitioners herein are ejected (from Sikanderpur marble market) they would suffer irreparable loss which cannot be compensated in any manner…”.

The marble shops are located along the length of MG Road just after Aya Nagar on the Delhi-gurugram border. The land here is of prime value.

According to an MCG estimate, the land occupied by the shops, which the municipal corporation claims is its, has an estimated market value of around ₹100 crore.

MCG sub-divisional officer Ajay Panghal said, “The MCG is closely observing the HC’S directive and awaiting the next hearing, based on which we will determine the next course of action.”

In 2004, the-then Huda realised that the land in Sikanderpur may fall next to forest land, where no construction was possible. Authorities reached an agreement with the Sikanderpur marble traders for relocating to alternative plots in sectors 33-34, where a separate market was demarcated.

All but 34 of the 83 marble traders moved to the new location. These 34 continued to operate their businesses from sectors 33-34 and Sikanderpur, against the agreement with Huda, resulting in the matter reaching the HC.

In 2008, the market land, which was once on ‘panchayati land’ and owned by Sikanderpur villagers, was transferred to the

MCG along with all parcels of panchayati land falling in the city limits.

Last month, when the HC dismissed all petitions by the marble traders, it paved way for the MCG to initiate measures to reclaim its land. On Saturday, MCG issued eviction notices to all the 34 marble traders giving them 48 hours to vacate the shops or face sealing. The owners then approached the HC for relief.