The local government in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh started a bigger effort on Saturday to get rid of what they say are illegal buildings in the Pap Mochan Tirtha area. They used bulldozers and teams from different departments to take down homes and shops. Even though the Supreme Court said not to just use bulldozers like that the government went ahead with the demolitions saying they were getting rid of illegal structures.
This happened after some fighting in the city. The government’s actions seem connected to that violence even though the Supreme Court has warned against just using bulldozers to solve problems. People are wondering if the government thought about other ways to handle things instead of just tearing down buildings.
The way the government used bulldozers to knock down properties has people worried if everything was fair. Taking down buildings because of “encroachments” makes people ask if the government was clear about why they did it and if there were other choices besides demolitions.