Supreme Court bans ‘bulldozer action’, says demolition cannot be done without prior notice
The Supreme Court today said that it strongly criticized the ‘bulldozer action’ of the state governments on Wednesday. The court said that the executive cannot replace the judiciary and the legal process should not prejudice the guilt of any accused. The Court took a strong stand on the issue of ‘bulldozer justice’ and issued guidelines for the demolition.
The Supreme Court, while ruling on “bulldozer action” by state governments to demolish properties of persons accused of crime, said it had considered the rights guaranteed under the Constitution that provide protection to individuals from arbitrary state action. It states that the rule of law provides a framework to ensure that individuals know that property will not be arbitrarily taken away.
The Supreme Court, while ruling on “bulldozer action” by state governments to demolish properties of persons accused of crime, said it had considered the rights guaranteed under the Constitution that provide protection to individuals from arbitrary state action. … pic.twitter.com/Ohel2wqKhh
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A bench of Justices BR Gavai and KV Vishwanathan delivered its verdict on petitions challenging the bulldozing action against people accused of the crime. This trend going on in many states is called ‘bulldozer justice’. State officials have in the past said that only illegal structures were demolished in such cases. But several petitions were filed before the court, highlighting the extrajudicial nature of the proceedings.
Justice Gavai said that it is the dream of every family to have their own house and an important question before the court is whether the executive should be allowed to snatch someone’s house. The bench said, “The rule of law is the foundation of a democratic government… The issue concerns fairness in the criminal justice system, which mandates that the legal process is not biased towards the guilt of the accused.”
