On August 9, the railway administration razed as many as 135 illegal houses built on railway land. The area, called Nai Basti, is termed “sensitive” as it is near Krishna Janmsthan. The demolition drive was carried out in the presence of authorities.
According to the reports, the Nai Basti area is dominated by people from the minority community. The administration said the houses were built “illegally over government land”.
Before the demolition drive notices were issued to the residents, they had taken the matter to the civil court, with the next hearing scheduled for August 21. Although the matter is subjudice, the administration carried out a demolition drive. As many as 100 houses were razed in the area on August 9.
The administration has issued notices to as many as 135 houses, which provide shelter to 200 residents.
Nitin Garg, the Divisional Work Engineer of Railways, stated that the removal of structures constructed without authorization on railway land was being carried out in accordance with the proper process. The land was needed for converting the Mathura to Vrindavan railway line from narrow gauge to broad gauge.
Rajesh Kumar Saini, the lawyer representing the affected families, explained, “After receiving notices from the railways, we filed a petition in the civil court. Subsequently, the court issued a notice to the railways, seeking their response. Last month, authorities requested more time to respond, but no response has been provided so far. Despite the case being under judicial consideration, the demolitions are taking place.”
Yakub Shah, 66, another resident, lamented, “I have spent my entire life here. Our homes are being unjustly razed. We weren’t even allowed to retrieve our belongings.”
Sayeed Ahmed, 84, voiced the sentiment of dispossession, saying, “Our ancestors had allocated a portion of their land to the British government for a new railway line in 1888. Today, we are being forcibly removed from our own land.”
Prashasti Srivastava, the Public Relations Officer of the Agra railway division, affirmed that “proper legal procedures were followed before the operation,” and mentioned that a high-speed rail corridor was proposed for trains like Vande Bharat.
Several affected residents expressed their frustration over the administration’s action. One Mohammed Naseem (55) whose house was demolished, stated, “Authorities are turning a blind eye to us. They disregarded our property documents. We are facing discrimination due to our religious identity.”
The Shri Krishna Janmasthan — also ‘Janmabhoomi’ in court documents, is adjacent to Shahi Idgah Mosque. the Shahi Eidgah mosque is adjacent to Temple built by tyrant Aurangzeb. The religious dispute simmered in the first half of the 20th century but a 1968 agreement calmed tempers. On October 12, 1968, an agreement was signed between the Shri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan and the Shahi Masjid Idgah Trust, which divided the land between the two parties and relinquished any claims of the Hindu parties to the land of the mosque.
As many as 15 cases have been filed to remove the mosque, which stands on the Krishna Janmasthan and was constructed during the 16th century on the 13.37-acre premises of the Katra Keshav Dev temple, on the orders of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. In May, all pending cases were transferred to the Allahabad High Court.
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