A large-scale demolition drive by the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Gujarat, India, has destroyed over 7,000 Muslim homes, displacing thousands and leaving them without shelter in scorching heat. According to Kashmir Media Service, the demolition drive, which covered an area exceeding 250,000 sq. km, was launched near Chandola Talab of Ahmadabad city on Tuesday. 

The operation came after the Gujarat High Court on April 29 upheld the state authorities’ decision to demolish the structures, citing that they were deemed illegal and situated on government land. However, residents refuted the claim saying they have valid documentation and have lived in the area for decades. A day earlier, over 4,000 shanties in Siyasatnagar and Bengali Vaas areas were torn down, rendering thousands of Muslims homeless.

The affected families, mostly labourers and ragpickers are struggling to secure alternative accommodation due to soaring rent and deposit demands. The demolition drive has intensified after last month’s Pahalgam attack in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, which observers view as a pretext to dispossess Muslims of their land and properties. Post-Pahalgam incident, over 6,500 people — most of them Muslims — were detained for verification of their citizenship status.

Within the same week, more than a thousand were arrested as alleged undocumented immigrants. The detainees included women and children. “To cover up its failures, the administration first demolished around 2,000 houses, and now the process of razing another 6,500 is underway.

This is a deliberate attempt to harass Muslims by making them homeless,” media reports quoted Nafees, convenor of the Gujarat-based Minority Coordination Committee, as saying. The demolition drive has come under severe criticism by Muslim organisations and human rights groups, who call it “inhumane” and demand immediate rehabilitation efforts.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)