New Delhi, February 24 The Supreme Court stated that individuals occupying railway land in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, do not have a legal right to be there, indicating that over 5,000 families will need to vacate the disputed land for the proposed expansion project.
A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi noted that the dispute over the land has been before various courts and observed that the stalemate over encroached railway land cannot continue indefinitely.
The court directed the Centre and state authorities to assess the eligibility of families residing in the area for the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).
The top court directed the Nainital district collector, Haldwani sub-division officer, and other officials, including members of the district-level legal service authority, to visit the area and set up a camp to assist the families occupying the land in filling out the necessary forms and completing the formalities for benefiting from the scheme.
The bench stated that the court would appreciate if the applications by eligible families for the PMAY scheme are submitted by March 31.
The bench directed the collector and the secretary of the state legal service authority to submit a status report.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan, representing the petitioners who are residents of the area, stated that they have been residing in the area, which is located around the Haldwani railway station, for over four to five decades.
He said that the state government had previously stated that they would regularize the area, but nothing was done.
Justice Bagchi said, "This is public land, or to say, railway land, and this fact is not in dispute. You are actually being granted a concession for being there."
"You cannot claim this as a right. You are being granted a concession because authorities have overlooked illegal activities for years."
Bhushan said that for the expansion project, not all the land was required, and the railways can take only the necessary portion or shift the project.
CJI Kant said that the court cannot ask the railways to shift the project as it is for experts to decide.
Senior advocate Collin Gonsalves, representing the petitioners, said that there are several religious places in the area, and people need resettlement before being displaced.
CJI Kant told Gonsalves, "Show mercy on these people. They are living in unhygienic conditions with no access to potable drinking water, electricity, and sewage. Let them decide if they want a house under the PMAY scheme, and if there are any obstacles, the court will address them."
Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, representing the Centre, stated that an expansion project was needed for the railways as the hills start from Haldwani upwards.
She submitted that river water had previously entered the tracks, causing damage to the railway infrastructure.
Bhati added that the displaced eligible families can be given houses under the PMAY scheme either in Uttarakhand or Uttar Pradesh, and, if needed, Rs 2,000 per month for six months can be provided to them.
She added that 13 residents of the area have freehold land, and the state will acquire these pieces of land.
The bench has scheduled the matter for further hearing in April.
On July 24, 2024, the Supreme Court directed the Uttarakhand Chief Secretary to hold a meeting with the Centre and the Railways to rehabilitate over 50,000 people who have encroached on railway land in Haldwani.
In 2024, the Railways moved the apex court seeking to overturn the Supreme Court's January 5, 2023 order, which stayed the Uttarakhand High Court order for the removal of encroachments from 29 acres of land claimed by the Railways in Haldwani.
The petition stated that a strip of the land should be made available immediately to facilitate railway operations as a retaining wall protecting the tracks collapsed during the monsoon season of 2023.
The Supreme Court stated that the state government will have to provide a scheme as to how and where these people will be rehabilitated.
The court directed the state government to identify the required strip of land for infrastructure upgradation and for the shifting of the railway line without any delay, along with identifying the families likely to be affected due to eviction.
According to the Railways, there are 4,365 encroachers on the land, while the occupants are protesting in Haldwani, asserting that they are rightful owners.
Nearly 50,000 people, mostly Muslims, belonging to over 4,000 families reside on the disputed land.
The Supreme Court on January 5, 2023, stayed the Uttarakhand High Court order for the removal of encroachments from 29 acres of land claimed by the Railways in Haldwani, terming it a "human issue" and stating that 50,000 people cannot be uprooted overnight.
In its December 20, 2023, order, the high court had said, "The railway authorities, in coordination with the district administration, and if necessary, with any other paramilitary forces, shall immediately, after giving a week's notice to the occupants over the railway land, ask them to vacate the land within the aforesaid period."