P Chidambaram lays into demolition drives; calls it 'complete breakdown of law & order'

Coming down hard on the recent demolition drives in the country, senior Congress leader and former Union Minister P Chidambaram said that such acts reflect a “complete breakdown of law and order” further adding the "novel" method of removing encroachments is aimed towards the Muslim community and the poor section. 

While speaking to PTI on the same, he referred to the Jahangirpuri demolitions and those in Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone, and now the ones in Rajasthan, he took a jibe at the Bharatiya Janata Party and said that the justifications by the BJP over the bulldozer-enabled demolitions "flies in the face of the law".

Further speaking stating that the demolitions were targeted towards a particular community and section, Chidambaram added that on observing the information based on the public domain, it can be assumed that most of the houses and shops that were demolished by bulldozers belonged to Muslims and the poor.

“If that perception is wrong, the authorities concerned should publish the correct data. As long as the perception remains — and is not contradicted — it is fair to assume that this ‘novel’ method of removing encroachments/illegal constructions is aimed at the Muslim community and the poor,” Chidambaram said.  

Further, he also spoke on the recently levied "soft Hindutva" charge against Congress and on whether Congress would push for secularism more aggressively, he said that secularism is a part of the basic structure of the Constitution and it is a basic foundational value of the Congress. 

"It is not enough to remain secular. Everyone must speak the language of secularism and raise a protest when secularism is violated. I cannot accept any departure from secularism", he added. 

Demolition drives across Indian states

Following the demolition drives carried out by the Madhya Pradesh government after the Khargone violence incident, it was followed by many other states including Delhi's Jahangirpuri and now Rajasthan's Alwar district where the administration with the use of JCBs took down several establishments in the name of illegal encroachments.

Following this, several Muslim leaders in Madhya Pradesh had also alleged that members of their community were being unfairly targeted by the authorities after the clash broke out.

Image: PTI