The Central government on Monday informed the Supreme Court that there would be no immediate removal of 48,000 dwellings alongside the railway tracks in Delhi. Appearing for the Central government, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said that the Railways, the Urban Development Ministry and the Delhi government would sit together to find a solution in 4 weeks and slums wouldn’t be demolished till then.
The Supreme Court was hearing a petition filed by senior Congress leader Ajay Maken seeking rehabilitation of slum dwellers prior to the removal of 48,000 dwellings alongside the railway tracks in Delhi. The plea also sought direction to the Ministry of Railways, Government of NCT of Delhi and DUSIB (Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board) to rehabilitate the slum dwellers prior to their eviction or demolition of their shanties. The plea which was filed through advocate Nitin Saluja said that the residents of the jhuggis couldn’t be considered as ‘secondary citizens’ and the removal of the jhuggis (shanties) would render these residents homeless thereby violating their human rights as well as the fundamental rights as guaranteed under the Constitution of India.
The petitioner claimed that the Railways admits that the said demolition drive will affect about 48,000 jhuggis, however, the actual number of jhuggis to be affected by the said demolition drive would be more than 1,00,000 and hence if the order is not clarified that it is necessary to rehabilitate the affected population prior to the removal/ demolition, it will render more than 5 lakh people in Delhi homeless and hapless. In addition, the 31 August order will also affect the general public in Delhi as there is a high chance of spread of the contagious Covid-19 when lakhs of slum dwellers will be forced to take refuge on the streets.
The jhuggi dwellers do not possess any other alternative place to live in Delhi as neither do they own any land nor they can afford any rented accommodation in Delhi and that all of them had shifted to Delhi in order to earn their livelihood as there is no work opportunity in their respective native villages and now, the demolition of their jhuggies with no hope for any resettlement will leave them without any shelter and livelihood, the plea added.
Earlier , the Supreme Court had directed the removal of 48,000 jhuggis situated along the railway tracks in Delhi. The SC then said that the encroachments in the safety zones should be removed within a period of three months without political or any other interference. The court had also stopped any court for passing an order of stay against such removals.