The Apex Court has put a stay on the Eviction of 50,000 people in Haldwani and has noted that the issue has an ‘Human Angle’ attached to it.

The Supreme Court Thursday put a hold on the Eviction Drive in Haldwani. Stating that 50,000 people from 4,000 families cannot be evicted in a week’s time, the Apex Court stopped the order issued by the Uttarakhand High Court that had given a green signal for eviction.

The Apex Court stated, “There cannot be uprooting of 50,000 people overnight… It’s a human issue, some workable solution needs to be found. Referring to the suggestion by the High court of using force to evict the people, the Supreme Court said, “It may not be correct to say that paramilitary forces have to be deployed to remove people who have been living there for decades.”

With the order issued by the Supreme Court, there is a sign of relief and joy among the families residing in the encroached land that belongs to the Railways. Fatima Khatoon, a 26-years-old woman, who was filled with joy, stated, “These are the tears of joy and a sign of relief as all of the families residing here were under great stress. The order by the Supreme Court has brought hope that we will get justice.”

Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice AS Oka of the Apex Court took up the case a day after activist-lawyer Prashant Bhushan made a formal request. The court has also put a hold on any construction activity in the area and sought responses from the Railways and the Uttarakhand government. It also said the case will be heard again next month.

The area in Haldwani covers a 2-km strip of land near the Haldwani railway station – Gafoor Basti, Dholak Basti and Indira Nagar, in Banbhulpura area. Besides houses – nearly half of the families claim to have a land lease – the area even has four government schools, 11 private schools, a bank, two overhead water tanks, 10 mosques, and four temples, besides shops, built over decades.

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