The National Human Rights Commission has issued notices to the District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police, Jammu, following a complaint alleging the forced demolition of about 25 homes of the nomadic Gujjar Bakkarwal community in Village Dwara. The NHRC has sought an action taken report within two weeks, citing alleged displacement and Forest Rights Act concerns.
India
-Krishna Kripa
The National Human Rights Commission has sent notices to the District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police of Jammu. The move followed a complaint about an alleged forced demolition of about 25 homes. The houses belonged to the nomadic Gujjar Bakkarwal community. The case papers said the demolition occurred during peak summer heat in a Jammu village.
The National Human Rights Commission has issued notices to the District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police, Jammu, following a complaint alleging the forced demolition of about 25 homes of the nomadic Gujjar Bakkarwal community in Village Dwara. The NHRC has sought an action taken report within two weeks, citing alleged displacement and Forest Rights Act concerns.
The NHRC has asked the two officials to file an action taken report within two weeks. The direction appeared in the case proceedings. The proceedings were dated June 17. The papers related to a complaint filed by a group in Delhi. The record listed “Advocate Sunil Kumar and others based in Delhi\”.
NHRC notice over Jammu demolition complaint
The complaint alleged the J&K Administration acted with the police force during the demolition. The location was listed as Village Dwara, Hamlet Bandi, Sidra. It also named Tehsil Jammu Khas, District Jammu, J&K. The complainants said around 25 houses were razed. The homes were linked to the Gujjar Bakkarwal community.
The complainants said the drive displaced families during 45 degree Celsius heat. The complaint claimed elderly parents, children, and infants were affected. The papers alleged the families were not allowed to remove belongings. The complaint described the result as sudden displacement. It said people were left without shelter during intense summer conditions.
NHRC notice cites Forest Rights Act and natural justice
The complaint argued the action breached the Forest Rights Act, 2006. It said the law applied in Jammu & Kashmir from October 2020. The complainants also referred to historical rights for the community. They said former rulers had granted such rights. The papers alleged these claims were ignored during the demolition.
The complainants further alleged the demolition was arbitrary and biased. The complaint said it amounted to a denial of natural justice. It also claimed victims were left homeless and destitute. The case record included the commission’s direction to seek official responses. It set a two-week timeline for the report.
The proceedings recorded the next step for the complaint. \”Let a copy of complaint be transmitted to the Superintendent of Police and the District Magistrate, Jammu, J&K, calling for an action taken report within two weeks, as per the proceedings.\” The NHRC notice remains linked to the allegations described in the June 17 case papers.
With inputs from PTI
