16 October,2024 03:48 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondent
Supreme Court of India. File pic
The Gujarat Government defended its decision to demolish a Dargah and other structures in Gir Somnath, stating that the lands were of governments abutting the waterfront Arabian Sea where the encroachments were removed, reported news agency ANI.
"The removal of encroachments has been part of a continuous drive undertaken by the revenue authorities of District Gir Somnath to ensure that the valuable government land abutting the waterfront (Arabia Sea) is freed up of encroachments," Gujarat Government said in an affidavit.
The affidavit by the state government was filed in a reply to a petition by Summast Patni Muslim Jamat through advocate Anas Tanwir, which sought to initiate contempt proceedings against Gujarat authorities for wilfull and deliberate contravention of the order, dated September 17.
The Union Government, however, expressed its unconditional apology for any alleged contemptuous conduct, emphasising its respect for the Apex Court and stating that it does not seek to affect SC's majesty.
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In its defence, the Gujarat Government opposed the claims made by the Jamat, arguing that it was "unfortunate" for the petitioner to attribute a communal motive to the demolition actions.
"In Phase-1 of the removal of encroachments, on October 8, 2023, 26 encroachments were removed from Revenue Survey No 1852 of Village Prabhas Patan, out of which one encroacher belonged to a member of the Hindu community and 25 encroachments belonged to members of the Muslim community. Phase-1 cleared 15,000 square metres of government land of encroachments," Gujarat Government said.
The affidavit detailed subsequent phases of demolition, noting that in Phase-2, 174 encroachments, including temples were removed, all belonging to the members of the Hindu community. In Phase-3, 155 encroachments were cleared from public roads, with 147 belonging to Hindus and eight to Muslims.
The government reiterated that these actions were part of a systematic effort to reclaim government land.
"Thus, the removal of encroachments has been part of a continuous drive undertaken by the Revenue authorities of District Gir Somnath to ensure that the valuable government land abutting the waterfront (Arabia Sea) is freed up of encroachments," Gujarat Government said.
The Gujarat Government stated that prior to the demolitions on September 28-29, 2024, notices were issued on September 5 under Section 202 of the Gujarat Land Revenue Code (GLRC) to inform encroachers about the illegal status of their structures.
The government also added that the petitioner lacked standing in this case and had not stated while filing for the petition how they were adversely affected by the demolitions.
During proceedings on Wednesday, Senior Advocate Sanjay Hegde, representing the Summast Patni Muslim Jamat, requested additional time to file a rejoinder and said that the state's only defence centred around the proximity of the land to the Arabian Sea.
A bench of justices BR Gavai, PK Mishra and KV Vishwanathan adjourned the matter after three weeks, as per ANI.
The Supreme Court had previously ruled against staying demolitions but indicated that if it found evidence of contempt regarding its orders, it would take serious action against responsible officials and may restore demolished structures.
On September 17, SC directed that there shall be no demolition anywhere pan India without seeking leave of the court till next hearing date.
The court clarified that its order would not be applicable if there is an unauthorised structure in any public place such as road, street, footpath, abutting railway line or any river body or water bodies, and also to cases where there is an order for demolition made by a Court of law, as per ANI.
The petitioners alleged that Gujarat authorities conducted illegal demolitions early morning on September 28, 2024, targeting centuries-old Muslim religious sites, such as mosques, eidgahs, mausoleums, dargahs and residential places of Mutawallis of the dargahs without prior notice or opportunity for hearing.
"The respondents herein, by carrying out the said demolitions, have blatantly defied the aforementioned order, thereby lowering the majesty of the court in the eyes of the general public, relaying utter disrespect to the orders of the court," the petitioner said.
The Summast Patni Musslim Jamat represents the Patni Muslim community in Prabhas Patan and seeks protection for religious sites of historical and spiritual importance.
"These include Haji Mangroli Shah Baba's tomb, dargahs, mosques, and graveyards that have been used and revered by the local Muslim community for over a century. The tomb and surrounding graveyards have existed since the time of the state of Junagadh, with the matter of their ownership and usage being resolved as early as 1903 by a legal resolution passed under the supervision," the petitioner said.
(With inputs from ANI)
