Anger In Khyber Pass As Bulldozers Roll On

New Delhi: The demolition drive at Khyber Pass in north Delhi entered the second day on Monday, with the Land and Development Office (L&DO) asserting that the constructions in the locality were illegal because the land belonged to the defence ministry. The angry residents claimed that they hadn’t been given sufficient notice and that they had unjustly been rendered homeless.
Rakesh Kumar, a 62-year-old whose house was demolished on Monday, expressed his disbelief at this sudden turn in his life. Kumar, who has been giving home tuitions to the children in the area for many years, said both his house and source of living were now gone. He is among the hundreds of residents of Khyber Pass in the Civil Lines area who are now uncertain about their future.
Kumar, who was carrying a plastic bag with him, claimed to have all documents about having lived in the locality for the past 70-odd years. “I have documents from the time when my father started living here in 1951. I was born here and have grown old here. I hadn’t ever expected it to end like this.”
At the demolition site on Monday, one could see bulldozers dismantling the buildings that were once home to the distressed people, who stood guarding their household belongings retrieved from the wrecked houses stacked in the open.
Sitting close to her belongings, Sandhya voiced her concerns about her children's education as they were forced to miss their exams due to the demolition of their home. Residents and human rights activists are calling for compensation or rehabilitation to help the people affected by the demolition rebuild their lives.
“My husband is the only bread-earner in the family and we can barely make ends meet with his money. Now the roof is gone from above our heads. I can't even think of what our lives will be like now.” Dabbing at moist eyes with her dupatta, Sandhya added, “If they wanted us to vacate the place, they should have just given us enough time and maybe not undertaken the demolitions in the monsoon season. Last night it rained heavily. My children were out in the open and have fallen sick.”
Among those whose houses were targeted for demolition is that of national pistol shooting coach Samaresh Jung. Calling the events “unfortunate” for the residents, Jung said, “The residents could have been given proper time to vacate or in lieu, compensation and rehabilitation package.” In a setback to Jung, on August 5, Delhi High Court refused to stay the demolition of his residence. “I have nothing to say now,” the sportsman said. “Even if I had obtained a stay, I couldn’t imagine living here when the entire neighbourhood where I grew up was demolished.”
Over 250 houses in the inner part of the residential cluster were first demolished on July 16. The demolition drive is still under way. When asked how many houses had been demolished so far and whether it was true as alleged by the residents that proper notice of demolition hadn’t been given, L&DO officials did not respond.
Urging the state to provide some rehabilitation to the dislocated residents, rights activist Nirmal Gorana said, “The residents who have been living here started by doing menial work for the British army. Why hasn’t the area been surveyed as a slum? It can meet the criteria for being a recognised slum.”