Supreme Court orders status quo for 10 days on demolition drive by Railways at Krishna Janmabhoomi

The Supreme Court on Wednesday restrained the Indian Railways from continuing with the demolition drive in Nai Basti near Krishna Janmabhoomi in Uttar Pradesh's Mathura. .The interim order was passed on an urgent plea by Yakub Shah, a 66-year-old resident who claimed that the houses of those who have been residing in the area since 1880, were being demolished.Demolition work by the Railways commenced on August 9, 2023, Shah said. An interim application against the demolition was filed before a civil court the very next day on August 10, Shah added.However, Shah submitted that the case was adjourned after the lawyer representing the Railways said that he had no instructions in the matter. Although the civil court was slated to hear the matter on August 14, it remained shut that day as court work was suspended following a resolution by the State Bar Council. The Bar Council had passed the said resolution between August 12-13 after an advocate was shot, Shah submitted. As a result, both the civil court in Mathura as well as the Allahabad High Court remained closed on August 14. .Shah further highlighted that the Railways took advantage of this situation and resumed demolition work on August 14, leaving him no choice but to approach the Supreme Court for relief. .The Court today ordered that status quo be maintained for 10 days. The matter will be heard next week. Shah was represented by Senior Advocate Prashanto Chandra Sen along with advocates Kaushik Chaudhry, Radha Tarkar, and Aaron Shaw..Background.In Shah's writ petition, the Supreme Court was urged to intervene in the matter as the residents' "only place to stay is getting demolished where they have been staying since 1880."The plea claimed that after a civil court was approached for protection, the Railways authorities deployed police officials at the site being demolished in Krishna Janmasthan, who were "ordered to hunt down residents" and "detain them" to ensure that demolition carries on uninterrupted.As a result, residents have been forced to seek refuge in other households to avoid such illegal detention, Shah claimed..The case itself is much older and can be traced to a 2005 suit filed by various residents to permanently restrain the Railways from evicting the residents from the disputed land. This suit is still pending before a Mathura court. While so, Shah submitted that the residents came to know that their homes would be demolished soon following a newspaper notification published in April this year. .A writ petition was filed challenging this move before the Allahabad High Court, which directed the residents to file a representation with the concerned authorities of the Northern Central Railway, Mathura. The Estate Officer of the Railways, however, dismissed their representation on May 22 "by passing an order of merely six lines," Shah said. This summary rejection prompted the residents to file another suit to restrain the Railway authorities. An interim stay application was also filed. However, interim relief was not granted by the Mathura court before which it was filed and the case was adjourned on several dates. It was due to be heard next on August 14 last, when a State-wide holiday was declared by the Uttar Pradesh Bar Council. .Whereas the writ petition before the Supreme Court has been filed by only one resident (Shah), the Court has been urged to extend protection to all such residents. Shah claimed that he was forced to approach the top court in a tearing hurry and that he represents several other victims of the proposed demolition drive. Fifteen other residents have been named in the petition..Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Idgah case: Hindu party moves Supreme Court for scientific survey of premises