New Delhi. The Supreme Court has once again shown a tough stance on ‘bulldozer justice’. The Supreme Court has once again made it clear that there will be a stay on the bulldozer operation until its final decision is taken. After this, the court completed the hearing and reserved the decision. The court has not fixed the date for pronouncing the verdict. The bench of Justice BR Gavai and Justice KV Vishwanath said that if its order is not followed then the court will take strict action. The victim’s house will have to be rebuilt and he will have to be compensated.
The Supreme Court again clarified in Tuesday’s hearing that the ban on bulldozer action will not include illegal encroachment. The court said – be it a road, railway line, temple or dargah, illegal encroachment will definitely be removed. For us, public safety is the priority. In Tuesday’s hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta presented the case on behalf of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh governments. He said- During the bulldozer action, allegations are being made that a particular community is being targeted. On this the Supreme Court said- India is a secular country. Whatever guidelines we make, they will be for everyone.
The Supreme Court had already banned the bulldozer action. Despite this, bulldozer action took place at two places, due to which the case of contempt of court also came before the Supreme Court. During this, senior advocate Sanjay Hegde, on behalf of one of the petitioners, asked the bench – What will he do if someone’s house is demolished? Will he run after the bulldozer driver? On this Justice Gavai said- If the order is not followed then the action will be rectified. The property will be renovated and the victim will be compensated.
After this comment of the court, lawyer Prashant Bhushan suggested that the amount of renovation and compensation should be taken from the vandals. After this, Justice Gavai, pointing towards Justice Vishwanathan, said – My brother has already said this. During the hearing, Justice Gavai, giving an indication of the final verdict, said – While writing the verdict, we will make it clear that if someone is merely an accused or guilty, then bulldozer action cannot be taken.