Ranchi, Sep 18 The Jharkhand High Court on Friday directed the Ranchi district administration to halt its ongoing anti-encroachment drive in the Heavy Engineering Corporation (HEC) area of the state capital till December 31.
A bench headed by Justice Ananda Sen, while hearing a petition filed by residents facing eviction, directed Ranchi Deputy Commissioner Manjunath Bhajantri and Senior Superintendent of Police Rakesh Ranjan to take no coercive action against the settlers until December 31.
The court, however, directed the settlers to remove the encroachments themselves within the stipulated period.
The petition was filed by the settlers through advocate Indrajit Sinha, who submitted that the authorities had not specified any date or given adequate time to the residents to remove their belongings.
The administration had lined up trucks and bulldozers to clear alleged encroachments along the bypass road leading to Delhi Public School in the state capital.
Sinha told the court that the administration had acted in a "high-handed manner" without giving the settlers sufficient time to vacate the area.
Moreover, with Dussehra, Diwali and Chhath festivals in the coming days, it will be difficult for the settlers to move out suddenly, he said.
The administration's anti-encroachment drive on September 15 to clear land belonging to HEC and the Railways had triggered massive protests by residents.
Protesters blocked the bypass road, disrupting traffic in the city for several hours.
The bench observed that immediate administrative action should be deferred in view of the upcoming festive season.
Following the court's direction, the anti-encroachment drive along HEC Bypass Road was suspended.
Ranchi, Sep 18 The Jharkhand High Court on Friday directed the Ranchi district administration to halt its ongoing anti-encroachment drive in the Heavy Engineering Corporation (HEC) area of the state capital till December 31.
A bench headed by Justice Ananda Sen, while hearing a petition filed by residents facing eviction, directed Ranchi Deputy Commissioner Manjunath Bhajantri and Senior Superintendent of Police Rakesh Ranjan to take no coercive action against the settlers until December 31.
The court, however, directed the settlers to remove the encroachments themselves within the stipulated period.
The bench observed that in view of the upcoming festive season, immediate administrative action should be deferred.
Following the court's direction, the anti-encroachment drive along HEC Bypass Road has been suspended.
The district administration launched the operation on Tuesday to remove alleged illegal constructions from land belonging to HEC and the Railways.
A team of officials, accompanied by police personnel and magistrates, had been carrying out demolition and eviction proceedings in the area.
The drive triggered protests by locals whose houses and establishments fell within the area identified for clearance.
The protesters alleged that the eviction process had been initiated without adequate rehabilitation arrangements.
During the hearing, the petitioners' counsel urged the court to restrain the administration from proceeding with the eviction and sought additional time for the residents to remove the structures.
The case relates to alleged encroachments on government land along HEC Bypass Road, where the district administration had recently begun a clearance operation.
