In a major action against land encroachment near the Indo-Nepal border, the Uttar Pradesh government has demolished 286 illegal religious structures across seven districts. The demolished structures include 225 madrasas, 30 mosques, 25 mazars, and six eidgahs.
भारत-नेपाल की सीमा पर यूपी के कई जिलों में उग आए आतंक के अड्डों पर योगी सरकार बुलडोजर एक्शन कर रही है।
— Prashant Umrao (@ippatel) April 28, 2025
संवेदनशील सीमा पर बने अवैध मदरसों, मजारों और ईदगाह पर योगी सरकार ने चाबुक चलाया है।
महाराजगंज, सिद्धार्थनगर, श्रावस्ती और बहराइच में सरकार ने सीमा से 15 किमी अंदर तक अवैध रूप… pic.twitter.com/813lKbSSQn
Demolition drive across 7 districts near Nepal border
The demolition drive is being carried out in districts adjoining the Nepal border, including Maharajganj, Siddharthnagar, Balrampur, Shravasti, Bahraich, Lakhimpur Kheri, and Pilibhit. According to official data, the highest number of demolitions has taken place in Shravasti, where 100 illegal madrasas, one mosque, five mazars, and two eidgahs were demolished.
UP में जमकर गरजा योगी का बुलडोजर
— Abhay Pratap Singh (बहुत सरल हूं) (@IAbhay_Pratap) May 19, 2025
एक सप्ताह में
– 225 अवैध मदरसे
– 30 मस्जिद
– 25 मजार /दरगाह
– 6 ईदगाहों को मिट्टी में मिला दिया गया
अकेले श्रावस्ती जिले में 110 अवैध ढांचों को ध्वस्त किया गया. नेपाल बॉर्डर पर योगी जी का ये ज़ोरदार बुलडोजर एक्शन हुआ है pic.twitter.com/y5fGjcYHl3
In Siddharthnagar, 35 madrasas and nine mosques were demolished. In Balrampur, 30 madrasas, 10 mazars, and one eidgah were identified as illegal structures and were removed. Maharajganj saw action against 29 madrasas, nine mosques, seven mazars, and one eidgah.
In Bahraich, 13 madrasas, eight mosques, two mazars and one eidgah were demolished. Lakhimpur Kheri recorded demolitions of eight madrasas, two mosques, one mazar and one eidgah. In Pilibhit, only one mosque was identified and brought down.
District wise detailed data is as follows:
- Shravasti: 110 madrasas, 1 mosque, 5 mazars, 2 eidgahs
- Siddharthnagar: 35 madrasas, 9 mosques
- Balrampur: 30 madrasas, 10 mazars, 1 eidgah
- Maharajganj: 29 madrasas, 9 mosques, 7 mazars, 1 eidgah
- Bahraich: 13 madrasas, 8 mosques, 2 mazars, 1 eidgah
- Lakhimpur Kheri: 8 madrasas, 2 mosques, 1 mazar, 1 eidgah
- Pilibhit: 1 mosque
Government’s rationale, encroachment removal and border security
The demolition campaign is being conducted under the direct orders of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. He has mandated the removal of encroachments within 10 km of the Indo-Nepal border. Speaking to the media, officials said that the purpose of this drive is twofold, that is, reclaiming illegally occupied government and forest land, and ensuring better border security.
#Nepal बोर्डर पर अवैध बनी हुई 30 मस्जिद, 225 मदरसे, 25 मजार और 6 ईदगाह पर चलाया गया बुलडोजर।#UttarPradesh में योगी जी है। pic.twitter.com/rgScXX9Z6V
— Sujeet Swami️ (@shibbu87) May 19, 2025
So far, the state has identified 429 cases of encroachment in the region, which include 345 illegal madrasas. Additionally, 41 mosques and 43 mazars were also marked for further action. Of these, 139 madrasas have already been sealed.
Ongoing operations and recent demolitions
The drive that started in the month of April continued after mid-May. On 11th May, demolitions took place at two locations in Maharajganj’s Semrahni and Jugouli villages, one madrasa in Shravasti’s Bhinga tehsil, and a mazar on forest land in Bahraich.
Earlier, between April 25 and 27, another 89 illegal structures, including madrasas, mosques, mazars and eidgahs, were demolished across the border districts. In April 2025, 17 madrasas were sealed during a similar campaign phase.
In recent demolitions, government officials reported that a mosque built on government land in Siddharthnagar’s Mohana area was razed. In Bhojpur Billi village of Shravasti, a madrasa operating on land belonging to a primary school was demolished. In Bahraich, an unauthorised religious structure was removed from forest department land. Additionally, in Balrampur’s Tulsipur tehsil, a madrasa under construction on public land was brought down.
Follow-up actions and monitoring
These demolitions did not happen overnight. Officials confirmed that legal proceedings took place before the demolition drive was carried out. For the pending cases, the legal proceedings are under way. Several notices were issued under Section 67 of the Revenue Code. The entire campaign is under state-level monitoring.
Government records suggest that many of the demolished madrasas were operating without approval from the education department. The other structures were not running with local Waqf Boards’ permission. The state government has reiterated that no religious encroachment will be tolerated, especially in sensitive regions bordering Nepal.
OpIndia investigation into illegal religious structures on Indo-Nepal border
OpIndia prominently highlighted the issue of illegal madrasas in 2022, with over 25 ground reports addressing the matter on our website. These reports shed light on the demographic shifts observed in villages bordering Nepal, as well as incidents of love jihad in these areas.
Notably, in March 2024, OpIndia reported that on the orders of Yogi Government, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) tasked with probing illegal madrasas has submitted its findings to the administration. The report advocates for the closure of approximately 13,000 unauthorised madrasas. Many of these Islamic institutions were discovered to be situated near the Nepal border. Moreover, investigations revealed that these illicit madrasas were established within the past two decades, with funding predominantly sourced from Gulf nations.
Earlier in September 2022, OpIndia published 25 ground reports that can be checked here. The impact of ground reporting was almost immediate and the state government started action with installation of thermal cameras across border.
