New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday (September 12) slammed the law enforcement agencies of the Gujarat government over using bulldozers to demolish houses when one member of the family is accused of a crime.
The court made the observations while hearing a writ petition filed by petitioner Javedali Mahebubmiya Saiyed.
“In a country where actions of the State are governed by rule of law, the transgression by a family member cannot lead to demolition of their legally constructed house or it would be equivalent to running a bulldozer over the laws,” a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court said in its order, reported The New Indian Express.
The three-judge bench of the apex court, led by Justice Hrishikesh Roy and Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and S. V. N. Bhatti said that threatening to demolish the house of an accused in a country governed by the Rule of Law are inconceivable.
“Moreover, the alleged crime has to be proved through due legal process in a court of law. The court cannot be oblivious to such demolition threats inconceivable in a nation where law is supreme,” said the court, reported Hindustan Times.
Earlier, on Monday (September 2), a Supreme Court bench of Justices B.R. Gavai and K.V. Viswanathan while hearing a batch of petitions challenging the “bulldozer actions” in various states had asked the parties to give draft suggestions that can be considered by the court to frame nationwide guidelines.
