Eviction looms over 700 families near Prime Minister’s residence

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A view of BR Camp, as the More than 700 slum-dwelling families living in BR Camp jhuggis near the Jaipur Polo Ground and Race Course area in Lutyens’ Delhi on Friday expressed concern over a demolition and relocation drive, New Delhi. | Photo Credit: Sushil Kumar Verma

Over 700 families living in JJ cluster bastis barely 300 metres from the Prime Minister’s residence on Lok Kalyan Marg face eviction and relocation to Savda Ghevra, 45 km away. Residents of Bhai Ram Camp (BR), Masjid Camp and DID Colony, behind the Delhi Race Club, fear losing their livelihoods and their children’s education.

The residents said Central Public Works Department officials recently threatened to demolish their homes if they did not vacate. Shahnawaz, a BR Camp resident, showed videos on his phone of officials accompanied by Delhi Police and Rapid Action Force personnel, with some houses being broken with hammers.

Condition of Savda Ghevra houses where residents are being asked to relocate. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

“They came to threaten us and said that if we do not evict, they will use bulldozers instead of hammers. We told them that the matter was still in court, but they still went ahead and broke down some roofs, sheds and walls,” said Abid, a mechanic at BR Camp.

The Centre has sought their eviction, saying the JJ clusters are in a protected zone and that the land will be used for defence infrastructure and security purposes.

The residents challenged the eviction in the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court, arguing that the Delhi government’s rehabilitation policy requires relocation within a five-kilometre radius. The government said there were no houses available within that radius and that the limit could be exceeded in some cases.

The residents said that after the Supreme Court dismissed their case on August 28, they were asked to vacate before October 6.

Condition of Savda Ghevra houses where residents are being asked to relocate. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

“Due to the uninhabitable condition of these flats, several families that had been relocated forcefully are coming back,” Abid said.

“We are not opposed to relocation. We have been allotted about 1,000 homes built in 2005. Now, they are not fit for living. The walls and floors have cracks, water is leaking and fourth-floor flats are not being allotted due to water leakage from the roofs,” Abid added.

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