In Tiljala, Friday namaz after 6-hour stand-off with payloader

Kolkata: A payloader stationed in front of two buildings being demolished on G J Khan Road in Tiljala was forced to roll back on Friday morning after a nearly six-hour stand-off with local residents, as devotees sought space to offer Friday namaz at a mosque located opposite the demolition site.As the payloader rolled out, devotees, including displaced dwellers whose shelters faced demolition for being tagged illegal by the KMC, knelt down at the vacated spot to offer namaz. The Talikhola mosque is situated bang opposite the buildings that were being demolished. After the prayer, guardrails were reinstalled and access to the road was restricted once more.A local stated, "The vicinity of our neighbourhood has been cordoned off with guardrails and none is allowed to move on the road where our mosque is located. Since morning, we had been pleading with the officials and cops to move the payloader so that we could use the site for prayers. The police finally complied, the payloader was removed and guardrails were set aside temporarily for the Friday namaz."An officer at the spot said the payloader, which belonged to the KMC, was sent back after its work was completed. "Security has been beefed up to maintain law and order here," he said.The demolition drive commenced after the prayers. The KMC on Friday also put up a notice to vacate the buildings. Even as workers with sledgehammers smashed the concrete, there were sporadic tension in the area with locals staging protests against the administration's action. They demanded that the administration provide alternative shelter to displaced residents and refrain from vacating and pulling down houses "forcibly".Police and central force personnel sought the help of some locals to keep the situation under control. The demolition work was finally suspended around 2.45 pm after the crowd turned restive. The entry to the two partially demolished buildings were blocked with barricades by police.Locals, while agreeing that the area had illegal constructions, questioned why occupants were not given adequate time to vacate. Nurul Islam, a local who helped police tackle the mob, said, "Most of the buildings here are illegal and if the administration decides to pull them down, there is no wrong in it. Our point is why the occupants were given so less time to vacate. We urge the administration to allow adequate time to find an alternative house on rent."Sammina Biwi, a displaced resident rued, "My family is now at the mercy of a relative as the roof of our rented flat in a G+3 building has been pulled down. Even we are not being allowed to go near our partially razed house. We are protesting against this injustice. Though the high court has given a stay order on the demolition work, we will not get back our shelter that has already been broken." Roquaiya Begum, another displaced tenant, said, "We left the flat in a hurry in the wee hours of Thursday, and could not take our utensils and a garments.."