'Can't uproot people overnight': Supreme Court stays eviction of over 4,000 houses in Haldwani

The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the Uttarakhand High Court's order directing eviction of over 4,000 families within seven days in Haldwani allegedly on 29 acres of Railways land, saying there can't be overnight displacement as it is related to a human issue.

A bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Abhay S Oka said a rehabilitation scheme needs to be put in place and there has to be clarity on who owned the strip of land. "There can't be overnight uprooting of people," the court said.

Nearly 50,000 people, a majority of them Muslims, belonging to over 4,000 families reside on the disputed land.

The court issued notice to the Indian Railways and the Uttarakhand government and put the matter for hearing on February 7.

Pictures of hundreds of residents including women and children staging protests in the area in bone-chilling cold conditions following the High Court's order have gone viral on social media.

During the hearing, senior advocates Salman Khurshid, Colin Gonsalves and Sidharth Luthra and advocate Prashant Bhushan on behalf of petitioners including 'Jan Sahyog Sewa Samiti' through its President Salim Saifi questioned the validity of the High Court's order of December 20, 2022.

The counsel submitted there was some lease lands and some of the occupants have been there for over 50-70 years.

Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati for Railways contended that the land was required for Railway expansion.

The court, however, said there were some occupants who bought it through auction and some by lease. It asked whether segregation was done on part of the authorities.

Bhushan said ex parte orders were passed during the Covid times and no opportunity was granted to occupants.

"You can't paint all of them with the same brush. There is a human issue. You need to find a practical way to solve this. This is not the way. There are multiple angles arising from the nature of the land, nature of rights conferred, nature of the ownership, etc," the bench said.

"There are establishments and how can it be said to clear them off in seven days," the bench asked, expressing displeasure with the HC's order.

Bhati said the land is gateway to the state and critical for its development. She said the proceedings under the Public Premises Act were initiated and no stay was granted on it. She also said the matter has been pending since 2017.

The court, however, said there is a need to find a workable arrangement.

The petitioners claimed they are poor people who have been lawful residents of Mohalla Nai Basti and Line No 17 & 18, Banbhulpura (Azad Nagar), Haldwani District Nainital, Uttarakhand for more than 70 years.

The petitioners claimed to be in possession of valid documents that clearly establish title and valid occupation. The High Court ought to have given due consideration to all these documents instead of making allegations of vote bank politics against State, they said.

Additionally, the names of the local residents have been recorded in the municipal records in the house tax register and they are paying the house tax regularly.

They said there are five government schools, one hospital, two overhead water tanks in the area.