Suspense Crime Sach Ka Dam
The Supreme Court on Wednesday gave a big verdict on bulldozer action. Justice BR Gavai on Wednesday quoted these lines of famous poet Pradeep to underline that everyone wishes to have their own house and does not want this dream to ever go away. Issuing nationwide guidelines on the demolition of properties, Justice Gavai started the 95-page verdict with these lines of the poet, “Apna ghar ho, apna aangan ho, is khwaab mein har koi jita hai, insaan ke dil ki ye chahat hai ki ek ghar ka sapna kabhi na chhode.” The bench said, “The famous poet Pradeep has described the importance of a home in this way.”
What decision did the court give on the bulldozer action?
Justice Gavai wrote the judgment for the bench, which also comprised Justice K V Vishwanathan. The court said that every person and family dreams of a home. The bench said, “A home is a symbol of the collective hopes of every family or individual for stability and security.” The bench said that an important question is whether the authorities should be allowed to deprive the shelter of a person accused of a crime as a measure of punishment. The bench said that the right to shelter is one of the aspects of Article 21 (protection of life and personal liberty) of the Constitution.
‘No property should be demolished without giving notice’
Laying down guidelines for the entire country, the court said that no property should be demolished without issuing a show cause notice and the affected should be given 15 days to respond. Taking a tough stand on ‘bulldozer justice’, the bench said that the authorities cannot act as a judge, convict an accused and demolish his house. The bench of Justice Gavai and Justice Vishwanathan said, “If the authorities arbitrarily demolish the house of a citizen only on the ground that he is accused of a crime, then it acts contrary to the principles of the rule of law.
The court said that if a person’s house is demolished only because he is an accused or convicted, it would be “completely unconstitutional”. While delivering the verdict, Justice Gavai said that the executive cannot replace the judiciary in carrying out its basic function.
