Mosque built on encroached govt land in UP’s Bareilly demolished amid heavy police de
Mosque built on encroached govt land in UP’s Bareilly demolished amid heavy police deployment
M.U.H
09/02/202632
Bareilly: The district administration on Saturday demolished an illegally-constructed mosque in Pipariya village under Bhojipura police station limits here amid heavy security presence, an official said.
Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM), Bareilly Sadar, Pramod Kumar, said the mosque was built on a plot notified as barren government land in revenue records.
The land had been encroached upon through illegal construction, he said, adding that the administration acted at the behest of a civil court order and demolished the illegal structure with the help of bulldozers, freeing the government property of encroachment.
SDM Kumar said the action came following an 18-year-long legal battle and eviction proceedings.
Initially, a tehsildar court had declared the construction illegal and passed an eviction orders. This decision was challenged in the civil court, which too refused to grant any relief to the appellants, dismissing the case.
Following the clearing of legal hurdles, the administration started the demolition process on Saturday amid heavy presence of police and PAC (Provincial Armed Constabulary) personnel.
Mohammad Umar, a resident of Pipariya village, said the Masjid-e-Ala Hazrat is about 50 years old. “It was demolished today, without any prior notice,” he alleged.
Kumar said, after receiving the court order on Friday, notices were issued to the concerned party to vacate the land, but since there was no compliance, the demolition action was taken — freeing around 300 square yards of encroached government land.
The SDM said a fine was also imposed on the encroaching party as part of the eviction process, which has been already deposited.
Strict security arrangements were in place in the village during the demolition of the mosque, with forces from several police stations and PAC personnel surrounding the entire area to maintain law and order, he added. PTI COR NAV ARB ARB
