Mystery deepens over 'ghost demolition' of 100 homes

Surat: The mystery surrounding what has now come to be called the 'ghost demolition' of nearly 100 houses in Nasirnagar — carried out in broad daylight and in full public view — deepened on Thursday as Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) officials offered contradictory explanations about the controversial operation.

In a video statement, Ashish Naik, head of SMC's Central Zone and additional city engineer, admitted that civic teams visited Nasirnagar on May 30 for road demarcation and clearance work. However, he stopped short of explaining who actually demolished the houses that left scores of families homeless.

Naik said the police had been informed as a routine measure to maintain law and order during the exercise. However, SMC has not clarified why heavy earthmoving machinery and a large workforce were deployed at the site if the operation was limited to road demarcation, as claimed. In the same video, Naik said some SMC officials went on leave due to health issues arising from the "mental pressure" generated by the controversy.

Hours later, municipal commissioner Nagarajan M broke his silence for the first time since the issue erupted nearly two weeks ago. Appearing before the media 13 days after the demolition, Nagarajan said he did not know who razed the houses.

"I am not aware who carried out the demolition. To ascertain the facts, I have constituted an inquiry committee, which will examine the circumstances under which the demolition took place," Nagarajan said.

He added that if any wrongdoing by SMC employees is established, action would be taken in accordance with the law. "If there is any mistake on the part of any of the 30,000 SMC employees, I will ensure corrective action and maintain discipline within the framework of the law," he said.

The commissioner denied any confirmed involvement of SMC officials in the demolition, maintaining that the inquiry committee would determine how events unfolded on the day of the operation.

However, videos of the demolition appear to show the presence of senior civic officials at the site. Apart from Central Zone personnel, officials from SMC headquarters' road department were also present during the razing. Video footage shows executive engineer J R Jivanramjiwala of the Central Zone and executive engineer Sujal Prajapati of the Road Department at the spot while the structures were being demolished.

Questioning the conduct of both civic officials and the police, Katargam BJP MLA Vinod Moradiya said it was troubling that authorities initially denied any involvement before later acknowledging that civic teams had been present at the site.

"It is unfortunate that SMC officials first denied being there and are now admitting that they had gone to the locality. Officials who were part of the operation should be suspended pending the inquiry," Moradiya said.

He also raised questions over the presence of senior officers from the police Special Operations Group (SOG). "It must be investigated why top SOG officials were present when the police were allegedly informed only as part of a routine law-and-order arrangement. The SOG is a specialised unit; ordinarily, local police personnel handle such bandobast duties," he said.

During the demolition, SOG officers, DCP Rajdeepsinh Nakum and police inspector Atul Sonara, were present at the site.

Moradiya further argued that an internal committee comprising only SMC officials would not be sufficient to investigate a case involving multiple departments and senior officers. He demanded that senior state govt officials be included in the probe panel to ensure an impartial and credible inquiry.