How Yogi Adityanath government reacted to Supreme Court's 'bulldozer justice' ruling

SC has equated "bulldozer justice" with a lawless state of affairs where might is right.

The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday welcomed the Supreme Court's verdict on "bulldozer justice", saying that it will help curb organised crime and instil a fear of legal consequences among criminals.

The Yogi Adityanath government faced flak from opposition after the Supreme Court laid down guidelines to curb the demolition issue and said that the executive cannot act like a judge.

The apex court said that no property of the accused should be demolished without a prior show cause notice and the affected must be given at least 15 days to respond.

Following the verdict, the opposition parties hoped that the "bulldozer terror" and "jungle raj" in Uttar Pradesh would end.

The UP government praised the apex court verdict and clarified that it was not a party in the case. It said that the SC order was part of the case 'Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind vs. North Delhi Municipal Corporation and others'.

"The first requirement of good governance is the rule of law. This ruling will increase criminals' fear of the law, making it easier to control mafia elements and organised professional criminals," a Yogi government spokesperson said.

The spokesperson added that "the rule of law applies to everyone."

Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister Om Prakash Rajbhar also welcomed the order, saying, "The government never demolishes anyone's personal property. Bulldozer is run on illegal occupation of public properties. It was the high court's decision, we do not do it on our own."

Rajbhar added that any official found guilty of illegal action will face action.

"The court's orders will be followed. If anyone is found guilty, action will be taken against them," he said.

Earlier today, a two judge bench of Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan equated "bulldozer justice" with a lawless state of affairs where might is right.

It said that the executive cannot assume judicial powers to punish citizens by demolishing their properties without following due process.

It termed such excesses "high-handed and arbitrary", adding that they need to be dealt with the "heavy hand of the law".

"If the executive acts as a judge and inflicts penalty of demolition on a citizen on the ground that he is an accused, it violates the principle of 'separation of powers'," the bench said in its 95-page judgment.

In a slew of directions, the apex court made clear that such an action will not be applicable if there is an unauthorised structure in a public place such as road, street, footpath, abutting railway line or any river or water bodies and also in cases where there is an order for demolition made by a court of law.

"No demolition should be carried out without a prior show cause notice returnable either in accordance with the time provided by the local municipal laws or within 15 days time from the date of service of such notice, whichever is later," the bench directed.

Opposition leaders praised the verdict and took a potshot at the Yogi government.

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had earlier celebrated "bulldozer raj", which the SC called "a lawless state of affairs".

"The #Bulldozer judgement of the Supreme Court is a welcome relief. The most important part of it is not in its eloquence, but the enforceable guidelines. Hopefully they will prevent state governments from collectively punishing Muslims & other marginalised groups," the Hyderabad Lok Sabha member said in a post on 'X'.

BSP chief Mayawati said that the order should put an end to bulldozer terror. "After today's decision of the honourable Supreme Court regarding bulldozer demolitions and the related strict guidelines, it should be expected that UP and other state governments will manage public interest and welfare properly and smoothly and the terror of bulldozers will definitely end now," Mayawati posted on X in Hindi.

The Samajwadi Party also hailed the SC decision and said the "bulldozer action" was "totally unjust, unfair, unconstitutional and illegal".

(With inputs from agencies)