This week authorities in Gujarat’s Bet Dwarka district removed about 335 buildings in Balapar village these included Muslim shrines houses and shops. The demolitions started last Saturday and went on all week. The local government said these buildings were “encroachments” and they were taking them down as part of a plan to remove all illegal buildings in the area.
The demolitions happened on the Bet Dwarka Islands in Gujarat India. The government said they were removing buildings that had been built illegally. But some people are saying the demolitions were actually targeting religious and cultural sites. A lot of buildings were taken down and many people who lived there were affected.
The Social Democratic Party of India SDPI said that the demolitions are targeting religious places and monuments but the government is saying it is removing encroachments. They are worried that there might be a religious or discriminatory reason behind the operation. The local authorities started the demolitions and now its a big issue.