Nainital, April 13: Uttarakhand High Court has stayed the razing of homes of slumdwellers in the Vikas Nagar area of Dehradun, saying the demolition notices contravened the principles of natural justice. Hearing a PIL on Saturday because of the urgency of the matter, a division bench of Chief Justice G Narendar and Justice Ashish Naithani said the demolition notices were issued without giving the residents an opportunity to be heard.

The bench ruled that the demolition be stayed until further orders from the court. The applicants are residents of different villages of Vikas Nagar in Dehradun district and lawful citizens of the country, according to the PIL. They received the notices on April 5, saying that their properties were to be demolished as they were built on water bodies, seasonal streams and drains. It was claimed in the petition that the administration served the notices without verifying the property details. Uttar Pradesh: Portion of 185-Year-Old Noori Masjid in Fatehpur Demolished by Local Authorities; Claims Illegal and Obstructing Widening of Banda-Bahraich Highway (Watch Videos).

Most of the residents who received the notices are illiterate and people from the lower strata of society with no proper knowledge about the outcomes, it was alleged. It was also claimed in the petition that those served with the notices had valid property documents to prove their ownership and that most of them had nothing to do with the water bodies and the streams. Sanjauli Mosque: Himachal Pradesh High Court Upholds Demolition Order for 3 Floors in Shimla.

Satellite pictures of the area show that those who received the demolition notices reside far from the seasonal streams, drains and water bodies. It was also said that the applicants would file property documents proving their ownership, according to government records, before the high court by April 15.

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