Christian leaders have praised India’s top court for ordering the end of a policy, adopted by many pro-Hindu state governments, whereby the homes of members of minority communities facing criminal charges are demolished without notice.
The policy, known as the “bulldozer raj” or “bulldozer justice,” was the brainchild of Uttar Pradesh’s pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who has been in power in the northern Indian state since 2017.
The monk-turned-politician’s administration in the country’s most populous state has used bulldozers to destroy many houses and business establishments of people from the minority Muslim community accused of criminal offenses.
Of late, the BJP-ruled government in neighboring Madhya Pradesh state has copied Yogi’s policy, forcing victims to seek the Supreme Court’s intervention.
In its Nov. 13 ruling, the court criticized the state governments for their “might is right” attitude and for not sparing a thought for families suddenly being made homeless.
“The chilling sight of a bulldozer demolishing a building reminds one of a lawless state of affairs, where might was right,” the bench of Justices B.R. Gavai and K.V. Viswanathan observed.
The top court ruling will bring “a sigh of relief from the public and is a strong reproach to the executive,” said Father Babu Joseph, a former spokesperson of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI).
The court has said the executive cannot “become a judge and act arbitrarily,” demolishing houses merely on allegations, the Divine Word priest based in the national capital New Delhi told UCA News.
Punishing a criminal offense shouldn’t be demolishing the home of an accused, he stressed.
“It is not a happy sight to see women, children, and ailing people dragged into the streets overnight,” the court bench said.
It said even in cases where people do not wish to contest a demolition order, sufficient time should be given to them to vacate.
This “instantaneous justice” without due process of law is dangerous, Joseph observed.
Such an authoritarian approach to governance smacks of prejudice against minorities and the marginalized, he added.
A C Michael, a Catholic leader based in New Delhi, said the apex court should punish officials who took the law “into their own hands.”
Even their political bosses are responsible and should be told to compensate for the losses, added Michael, a former member of the Delhi state minorities commission.
“Bulldozer justice is a perfect example of the executive taking the law into their own hands,” he added.
source : uca news