ACT AGAINST THE PEOPLE WHO SOLD US THE LAND, SAY SLUM RESIDENTS

After the Supreme Court on Monday ordered the eviction of thousands of slum dwellers encroaching on the Aravalli forest area in Faridabad district, residents are demanding temporary rehabilitation and action against those who sold land to them decades ago. As many as 10,000 houses are set to be demolished following the order, said residents.

Biram Kumar, a resident of the village, said, “The authorities conducted demolition drives in September last year and April this year too, but the people living here are mostly those who used to work in mines and have nowhere else to go. After mining was stopped, they started working as daily wage labourers and construction workers, bought small plots here and built houses.

“If the whole process was illegal, then the land should not have been sold to them. Now, these residents do not have any savings and will soon be rendered homeless. The authorities should take action against those who were involved in duping the slum dwellers,” said Kumar.

After the demolition of 300 houses in April, residents of Khori village approached the Supreme Court for protection, seeking rehabilitation before the demolition of their houses. On April 6, the Khori Gaon Residents’ Welfare Association also organised a day-long peaceful protest outside the office of the commissioner of the Municipal Corporation of Faridabad and the deputy commissioner.

Nirmal Gorana, the general secretary of Bandhu Mukti Morcha, an organisation that is taking up the cause of the residents, said, “The orders of the Supreme Court must be complied with by the state government, but they should first understand its responsibility and provide temporary rehabilitation within two weeks, before demolishing their (villagers’) houses.”

“These people are already facing the brunt of Covid-19, with many losing their jobs. Now, with this order, they will have no place to live,” he said.

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