Khori oustees hold protest, demand rehabilitation

Khori village colony oustees staged a demonstration in support of their demand for rehabilitation here on Monday. The protesters, under the banner of the Khori Jagriti Manch (KJM), submitted a memorandum to officials of the Municipal Corporation Faridabad (MCF).

The protesters, organised under the Khori Jagriti Manch, an association formed by the oustees, claimed that while as many as 1,200 houses had existed prior to 1980, the actions taken by the MCF and the Forest Department to demolish all residential structures were wrong and unjustified.

Manch spokesperson Pappu Pradhan said while the issue had been raised at various levels, including the judiciary, only those constructions that were built after the introduction of the Forest Act were required to be removed. However, the authorities demolished structures that had existed prior to the formation of the Municipal Corporation or the introduction of the Forest Act. He added that a large number of residents had been living there for over 60 years, and their constructions were not illegal. He criticised the removal of structures in the name of anti-encroachment from the Khori village colony in June 2021, stating that the failure to identify legal structures left hundreds of poor people homeless.

Pritam, one of the affected individuals, said while poor people had been rendered homeless, the authorities failed to take action against buildings and farmhouses constructed by the rich and influential. Mano Devi, a woman affected by the demolitions, said the majority of the oustees haven’t received any compensation or alternative housing facilities.

In June 2021, local authorities removed around 9,000 structures that had allegedly been illegally constructed over the years on land governed by the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA) or designated as forest land, following a Supreme Court order.