During a hearing on Wednesday, the Supreme Court used harsh words to criticize the practice.
“Such arbitrary and capricious actions have no place in a constitutional democracy,” the report said, adding that officials “who took the law into their own hands” should be held accountable.
The court then issued guidelines requiring the authorities to notify the resident 15 days before the alleged illegal property is demolished.
The notice must explain the reasons for the demolition. If the accused does not respond to the notice within 15 days, the authorities can proceed, but they will have to withdraw the proceedings, the court said.
He also warned that violation of these rules would be considered as contempt of court.
Throughout the process, the court strongly criticized the extrajudicial demolition.
Earlier this month, it noted that the demolition of property simply because a person has been charged with a crime is “simply unacceptable under the rule of law”.
He also noted that citizens’ voices cannot be silenced by the threat of demolition.
While the Supreme Court’s recommendations can be seen as a positive step towards ensuring that such demolitions do not become the norm, observers say that implementation of the ruling will be key to ending the practice.
Amnesty International India, a leading human rights platform, lauded the ruling, saying that although it was late, it was a welcome step in protecting people’s rights.
“This is a major victory in ending the deeply unjust, widespread, illegal and punitive demolition by the Indian authorities, mainly targeting the Muslim minority, which has often been referred to as ‘bulldozer justice’ by ruling party political leaders and the media.” says the statement of the organization.
