Home of man accused in Nagpur violence case partially demolished

Nagpur’s civic authorities on Monday demolished allegedly illegal portions of the home of Fahim Khan, one of the persons accused of being involved in the violence that broke out in the city on March 17, reported PTI.

Khan, the leader of the Minorities Democratic Party, and five others have been charged with sedition and spreading misinformation on social media in connection with the clashes.

The violence broke out hours after Hindutva groups held a protest in Nagpur demanding that Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s tomb located in Maharashtra’s Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar be removed.

Sunil Gajbhiye, Nagpur Municipal Corporation’s deputy engineer, told ANI that the demolition had been conducted following “proper investigation”.

“We had the order to investigate a complaint about illegal construction. We did a proper investigation. A notice was issued for 24 hours as per section 53(1) of the MRTP Act [1966 Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act],” Gajbhiye was quoted as saying. “As soon as the duration was completed, this action was taken.”

There are no provisions in Indian law that allow for the demolition of property as a punitive measure. However, the practice has become commonplace in Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states.

In November, the Supreme Court held as illegal the practice of demolishing properties of persons accused of crimes as a punitive measure. It said that processes must be followed before removing allegedly illegal encroachments.

PTI quoted state minister Pratap...

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