Bulldozer action in Nuh | The law isn't for breaking

A stern judicial veto from the Punjab & Haryana High Court has put a question mark on the legality of punitive demolitions of homes and other structures by bulldozers. The controversial action—pioneered as a hardline law and order measure by Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath and taken up with enthusiasm by a series of his compeers—was most recently on view in Nuh, the riot-torn district in south Haryana. On August 7, a suo motu action by the division bench of Justice G.S. Sandhawalia and Justice Harpreet Kaur Jeewan put the brakes on bulldozers set rolling by the Manohar Lal Khattar regime against those seen as having participated in the violence. But by then, the deed was done—over four days, the local agencies had already demolished about 350 shanties and 50 structures, including homes, shops and commercial spaces on the pretext of clearing encroachments on government land. Those targeted were primarily Muslim.