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DDA calls off demolition in Majnu Ka Tila gurdwara

Staff Reporter

Devout Sikhs oppose the move, confront the police personnel accompanying the squad Devout Sikhs oppose the move; confront the police personnel accompanying the squad

RESISTANCE: Devout Sikhs protesting in the Gurdwara complex at Majnu ka Tila in New Delhi on Friday. Photo: V.V. Krishnan

NEW DELHI: A demolition squad of the Delhi Development Authority that went to Majnu Ka Tila here on Friday to pull down some illegal structures adjoining the main Gurdwara had to abandon the operation midway as it met with fierce resistance from a large number of devout Sikhs who opposed the move and confronted the police personnel accompanying the squad.

Following a pitched battle between the two sides in which the police resorted to a mild cane charge and use of tear gas, the demolition operation was called off for the day. In the face-off, six police personnel and a large number of people from the other side sustained minor injuries. The North Delhi police later registered a case of rioting and arrested seven persons.

However, before it met with resistance, the squad demolished a portion of the illegal structure that housed the sewadars of the Gurdwara. In a statement, the Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and Shiromani Akali Dal leader Onkar Singh Thapar criticised the DDA action and warned that it would not be allowed to carry out any demolition at the Gurdwara.

Meanwhile, DDA demolition squads that have on High Court orders removed about 80 illegal structures, including some temples, from the banks of the Yamuna during the past two days are expected to continue with the drive in greater police presence. Since the Delhi High Court had on August 10 pulled up the DDA for not complying with earlier orders to remove illegal encroachments from the Yamuna banks, the DDA had on Wednesday taken up the task of removing the remaining encroachments. While a large number of ghats have already been demolished, 12 were pulled down on Thursday.

A number of temples have also been demolished during the past few days, including the Manokamna Siddh Hanuman Mandir in Yamuna Bazar. A DDA spokesperson said on Thursday that demolition work was undertaken along ghats No. 1 to 12. Barring ghat No. 6, Hanuman Temple and Parshuram Dangal Society for which stay orders have been obtained by the owners from the court, the DDA spokesperson said, demolition across the remaining area along the Yamuna would continue as per the court orders.

Following this action, the DDA would clear all encroachments from its land and fence the area between the DND flyover and Kalindi Kunj.

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