Demolition drive by Railways in New Delhi | High Court Questions Timing

Stepping into the demolition row, the Delhi High Court came down heavily on the Railway Ministry and the police for razing the slum cluster and directed the authorities to immediately rehabilitate over 5,000 people rendered homeless in the biting cold. The Chief Minister suspended two Sub-Divisional Magistrates and another senior official for “failing to arrange” food and shelter for those evicted.

After meeting Prabhu, Kejriwal said no slums would be demolished without rehabilitation of dwellers, especially those occupying Railways land.

“It was decided that railways will give us the schedule in the next three/four years wherever railways wanted land for its development”.

While political parties are involved in sloganeering over the demolition drive by the railways, the Delhi government is yet to come out with any concrete relocation policy for slum dwellers.

Later in the day, Gandhi visited the spot, while Kejriwal met Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu to discuss the issue. “They are in power in Delhi”, Rahul said outside Parliament before he rushed to the Shakur Basti slums. “Instead, they should provide help to the people who have been displaced & rehabilitate them”, Gandhi said on Twitter.

Some 500 hutments were demolished by Indian Railways at Shakur Basti in west Delhi on Saturday, leaving hundreds homeless in the winter chill. They alleged that then child had died in the anti-encroachment drive.

“We will try to help you…”

Calling the hutments an encroachment, Prabhu said they had become an impediment for building a new passenger terminal and were also a safety hazard. “Every minute that they spend out in the cold counts”, the bench said. “I am sorry that is not the style that is followed in governance”, she said without naming Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. Mr. Kejriwal’s anger against the Railways is understandable but whether he will be able to hold them accountable is up to him.

“Given the scale of the human tragedy, the court expects all parties to act in coordination to ensure that relief and rehabilitation are given to persons who lost their homes. Kejriwal, the CM, and all should have sat down together and said alright we will do this, but this should have been done when time was appropriate”, she said.

“We were not given any information about the demolition”.