Eviction notices to 41 Dalit families in Hapur withdrawn, inquiry on

Of the 41 houses, local residents said 40 had been built under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), the flagship Central housing scheme for the poor, since 2019.

“We have taken the cognizance of the news report and have withdrawn all the 41 notices. The residents had shown us copies of what they said was a land deed issued to them in 1986. This is a matter of inquiry. A high-powered committee has been formed by the District Magistrate under the chairmanship of ADM Hapur along with SDM, Garhmukteshwar and Executive Officer, Garhmukteshwar to give the reports within two weeks,” said Himanshu Gautam, Chief Development Officer, Hapur.

Kamla with her PMAY (U) certificate. (Express photo by Abhinav Saha)

Residents of 40 households said they had received Rs 2.5 lakh in three installments under PMAY to construct their houses.

The legal notice, issued on April 8 by an advocate on behalf of the Garhmukteshwar Municipal Council’s Executive Officer Mukta Singh, said the land belongs to the government and the houses had been built on what used to be a pond. It reads: “You have illegally occupied the land of the Nagar Palika and built a house on it and you do not want to remove it and therefore, it is important to initiate legal proceedings against you. Within 15 days of receiving this notice, remove your occupancy on the land and submit the land to Nagar Palika or else you will be responsible for the case against you.”

According to the residents of Indra Nagar, they moved to the locality after being relocated from Chupla in Garhmukteshwar which, at the time, was part of Ghaziabad district. The residents have still preserved a copy of the notice issued by the then local administration on July 18, 1986, asking them to relocate.

Residents of 40 households said they had received Rs 2.5 lakh in three installments under PMAY to construct their houses. (Express photo by Abhinav Saha)

The April 8 notice also said: “Municipal officials have told you orally several times to vacate the land but you refuse to vacate the land without following statutory provisions. And in your ego (‘apni hekdi ke bal par’), you say the said land has been given to us in the land records and that the government has given us the records. On the said land, there exists no records of any residential plots, and in any case, if the land records have been created in the name of anyone, it has been cancelled.”

On Friday, the residents, when contacted, said they had not been told yet about the notices being withdrawn. “No one has told us anything. We were earlier told to hire a lawyer and fight the case in the court,” said Kuldeep Singh, 38, a resident.