In a scathing verdict, the Supreme Court on Tuesday, April 1, directed the Prayagraj Development Authority (PDA) to pay Rs. 10 lakh in compensation to each of six individuals whose homes were unlawfully demolished. Calling the actions of the authority "inhumane and illegal," the court condemned the violation of constitutional rights and due process.
Reminding the PDA about the right to shelter, the court said, “The authorities and especially the development authority must remember that the right to shelter is also an integral part of Article 21 of the Constitution of India... Considering the illegal action of the demolition which is in violation of rights of the appellants under Article 21 of the Constitution, we direct the Prayagraj Development Authority to pay compensation of 10 lakhs each to the appellants.”
The case involves the demolition of homes belonging to Zulfiquar Haider, Shahnaz Parvin, Ali Ahmed Fatmi, Naila Fatmi, Baby Maimuna, and Ahmad Ali on March 7, 2021. The court found that the PDA had served a show-cause notice on December 18, 2020, by affixing it to the properties with a claim that two prior attempts were made to serve the notice in person. A subsequent demolition order dated January 8, 2021, was also affixed in a similar manner. However, the first registered post communication regarding the demolition was sent only on March 1, 2021, and received by the appellants on March 6, just one day before their houses were razed.
The Supreme Court ruled that this left the residents with no opportunity to appeal against the demolition, making the process arbitrary and unjust.
A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan ruled that the demolition was carried out in violation of due process and the right to shelter under Article 21 of the Constitution.
The judges expressed shock at the manner in which homes were razed within 24 hours of demolition notices being served. It ruled that the action violated Article 21 of the Constitution and amounted to an inhuman and unlawful abuse of power.
“These cases shock our conscience. Residential premises of the appellants have been high-handedly demolished...the development authority must remember that there is right to shelter under the Constitution of India and something known as rule of law in this country which is part of the basic structure of the Constitution. Residential structures of citizens cannot be decided in such way...This affixing business must stop,” the Court orally observed, according to Bar and Bench.