In the famous Banbhulpura of Haldwani, Uttarakhand, people from the community pelted stones at the police, administration and municipal corporation team that had gone to demolish the illegal madrasa and namaz place built on government land. During this, miscreants set fire to Banbhulpura police station. Dozens of vehicles of police and media persons standing there were burnt with petrol bombs. The policemen somehow saved their lives by running away from the police station.
Six people died in the chaos
Six people have died in the uproar till 2 o’clock in the night. More than 250 people, including women SDM and SP, injured in stone pelting are undergoing treatment in hospitals.
Orders to shoot miscreants at sight
In view of the tense situation, DM Vandana has imposed night curfew and given orders to shoot the miscreants at sight. Internet service has been stopped at night. Staff of police stations and posts across the district including four company PAC reached Banbhulpura. The miscreants are being identified. At the same time, instructions have also been issued to keep markets and all schools closed on Friday.
The team had reached Banbhulpura to break encroachment
Let us tell you that Banbhulpura is the same area where last year the High Court had ordered to vacate the colony with a population of 50 thousand situated on the railway land. The police-administration had also made complete preparations to remove the encroachment. Meanwhile, the matter reached the Supreme Court and is currently under consideration. Recently, the team of Municipal Corporation and Administration had reached Malik Ka Bagicha of Banbhulpura in Muslim dominated area to take action against encroachment. During this period an illegal madrassa and namaz place was also found here. On Thursday afternoon, around 4.15 pm, the police, administration and municipal corporation teams arrived with bulldozers to break the encroachment.
Apart from administrative and police officers, there was a force of about 700 people including police and corporation employees, but as soon as the bulldozer and the team moved forward. Stone pelting started from all sides. Within no time a crowd of more than 10 thousand people from the Muslim community gathered. Stones started raining from the roads and from the roofs of houses. SDM Kaladhungi Rekha Kohli, SP Harbans Singh, SO Pramod Pathak, police, corporation personnel and journalists were pelted with stones. By six o’clock the chaos had spread throughout the area. A large number of miscreants reached Banbhulpura police station. Where they also set on fire more than a dozen vehicles of police and media persons standing outside the police station. Apart from this, more than 50 vehicles have been burnt in different areas. This includes two PAC and police buses, four-wheelers and two-wheelers parked on the roads. Dozens of vehicles have been damaged.
High Court refuses to give relief in Banbhulpura case
The High Court heard the petition filed to stop the encroachment and demolition in Malik’s garden and Achchan Khan’s garden of Banbhulpura area in Haldwani. Without giving any relief to petitioner Safia Malik and others, the single bench of vacation Justice Pankaj Purohit has fixed February 14 as the date of next hearing. This matter was so sensitive that the Advocate General and other government lawyers appeared on behalf of the government. He told the court that this land had been transferred several times without the permission of the Commissioner, whereas this land was given to Yasin Malik for agricultural use. The condition was that no building would be built in it. This land cannot be transferred, but still it was sold, which is against the rules.
The petitioner said that he has a lease of 1937, which he got from the Malik family. The government cannot take possession of it. In the notice issued by the Municipal Corporation, the Madrasa has been declared illegal and asked to be demolished.
