Hundreds were rendered homeless in the winter chill and a 6-month-old baby died after the authorities demolished hutments built on railway land in the national capital, witnesses and police said
Delhi Commission for Women chairperson Swati Maliwal met people affected by the demolition drive.
New Delhi: Hundreds were rendered homeless in the winter chill and a 6-month-old baby died after the authorities demolished hutments built on railway land in the national capital, witnesses and police said.
Delhi Commission for Women chairperson Swati Maliwal met people affected by the demolition drive. Pic/PTI
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Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal accused the Railways of demolishing some 500 hutments on Saturday, “in such cold”, leaving hundreds of poor — men, women and children — shivering in the open.
The Delhi government said the demolition violated judicial orders, and were carried out without informing it.
Suspended
Kejriwal, who visited the site at Shakur Basti at 2 am on Sunday, ordered the suspension of two sub divisional magistrates for failing to provide relief to those affected.
Railway officials who met Kejriwal later said the land was cleared as the encroachment was affecting operations and they had an order from the National Green Tribunal. Divisional Railway Manager Arun Arora said the baby died before the drive started.
Kejriwal said when he spoke to Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, “he said he was not aware of this operation. He was also shocked.” The CM pointed out that there were court orders to raze properties of some of the rich and politicians in Delhi but were never implemented.
Heartless
Kejriwal tweeted: “A child died. God will never forgive them. Heartrending scenes. How (could) our own countrymen do this to our poorest fellow countrymen?”
CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury added: “How can authorities resort to mindless demolition leading to the death of a child, leaving slum dwellers to suffer, roofless in winter?”
Baby died
The baby’s grandmother Rubiya Khatoon said some objects fell on the girl when they were in a hurry to leave the shanty. “We were asked to vacate. The children were sleeping. In the hurry to leave, some things fell on the baby. We took her to hospital but she did not survive,” she said.
Resident says
Muhammad Kuddus, a resident of the slum, said he had lived there since 1983. “When we build huts, they break it after 3-4 months. The government had promised to provide us a place to live, but that never happened,” he said. Kuddus said the notice for demolition reached them only the previous evening.
500 No of hutments that were razed on Sunday
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