Nine shrines demolished during anti-encroachment drive in Gujarat
Nine religious shrines, including mosques and dargahs, were razed on Saturday as part of a demolition drive to clear encroachments in the Veraval area of Gir-Somnath district in Gujarat.
Nine religious shrines, including mosques and dargahs, were razed on Saturday as part of a demolition drive to clear encroachments in the Veraval area of Gir-Somnath district in Gujarat.
The demolition drive, which began at 5.30am on Saturday in Veraval’s Prabhas Patan town near the Somnath temple, saw over 1,000 police officers help clear 102 acres of government land worth ₹32 crore from encroachments, said Gir-Somnath district collector DD Jadeja. At least 120 people were detained during the drive.
“This is one of the largest anti-encroachment drives in the state in recent years where nine religious sites including mosques and dargahs were demolished as they were built illegally,” said Jadeja. “Also,one illegal lodge with 40 rooms was also demolished.”
The district collector said that the administration had given a notice of more than 15 days to remove the encroachments but there was no response, which led to Saturday’s demolition drive.
The law and order situation is under control in the area, and no untoward incidents have occurred, police said, adding that the administration was in the process of clearing the debris.
Following the incident, MCC-Gujarat wrote to Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel seeking justice for the Muslim community. The committee alleged that several ancient shrines in Prabhas Patan including Haji Mangrol Dargah, Shah Silar Dargah, Garib Shah Dargah and Jafar Muzaffar Dargah were subjected to demolition on Saturday.
The letter, written by MCC-Gujarat convener, claimed that the presence of Haji Mangrol Shah Dargah is recorded in Junagadh state’s revenue records dating back to February 18, 1924. “Despite cases being pending in the high Court and Waqf Tribunal, the demolition was carried out, which is truly an unjust act,” he said in the letter.
The letter also points out to a recent Supreme Court order against demolitions. The interim order, released on September 17, mandates that no demolition should occur without its permission till October 1.
A state government official, however, said that all due process was followed, and no laws were violated during the demolition. The official, requesting anonymity, said that the SC’s order does not apply to public place encroachments, which was the case in Prabhas Patan.
“Sufficient time was provided for the encroachers to remove their illegal structures,” the official added.
Earlier this month, civic authorities in Surat launched an anti-encroachment drive in the Saiyedpura locality, demolishing shops and illegal structures with a bulldozer, hours after the area was shaken by communal clashes.
The unrest began on the evening of September 8 when some teenagers allegedly threw stones at a Ganesh idol in the Variyavi Bazar area, leading to violent retaliation, with a mob reportedly pelting stones and vandalizing cars near the local police station.