On 25th February, the Supreme Court of India made it clear that land belonging to the Railways cannot be dictated upon by encroachers. The Court said that those facing eviction cannot insist on rehabilitation at the very site earmarked for railway expansion. The order was passed in the long running Haldwani eviction matter by a Bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Vipin Pancholi.
The Bench observed that while rehabilitation must be explored, the right to occupy railway land cannot be converted into a bargaining tool against infrastructure development. CJI Kant remarked, “Why insist on staying there when there can be another place with better amenities. For any ambitious project there is vacant space needed on both sides. The people staying there cannot dictate where the railway should lay the line.”
The Court emphasised that the stalemate over the land cannot continue indefinitely.
Over 4,000 families facing eviction
Around 4,000 families living illegally on railway land in the Banbhoolpura area of Haldwani are to be evicted. In December 2022, the Uttarakhand High Court directed the removal of encroachments from railway land. Several encroachers claim to have been living there for decades. When the High Court declined relief, they approached the Supreme Court and argued that eviction would render them homeless and disproportionately affect marginalised sections of society.
The petitioners also contended that the BJP ruled State government failed to effectively argue their case before the High Court, resulting in a ruling favourable to the Railways.
Petitioners challenge High Court’s summary approach
One of the key legal arguments presented before the Supreme Court was that adjudication of title over immovable property requires detailed examination of documentary evidence, witness testimony, cross examination and pleadings. The petitioners submitted that such an exhaustive exercise could not have been undertaken in a summary proceeding under Article 226 of the Constitution.
In January 2023, the Supreme Court had stayed the High Court’s eviction order and called for rehabilitation measures to be considered. Later, in July 2024, a Bench comprising Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta and Ujjal Bhuyan had also objected to the Railways attempting to piggyback on directions issued in a public interest litigation to carry out evictions without following the due procedure prescribed under law.
Court shifts focus to rehabilitation, not entitlement
However, on Tuesday, the Court clarified that there is no dispute regarding the ownership of the land. The Court observed that it belongs to the State, which is entitled to determine its best use. Justice Bagchi observed that any rehabilitation extended would be “more of a help and less of a right”, underlining that occupation of public land cannot crystallise into enforceable claims over infrastructure planning.
The Court suggested that affected families may apply for rehabilitation under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna, noting that most of them would fall under the Economically Weaker Section category. The Bench remarked, “It is highly desirable that the livelihood of the petitioner is not affected and thus let applications be filed under PM Awas Yojna.”
Directions to administration and legal services authority
To operationalise the rehabilitation process, the Supreme Court directed the Collector of Nainital and local authorities in Haldwani to provide application forms under PM Awas Yojna to the residents. Further, the Member Secretary of the State Legal Services Authority has been instructed to organise rehabilitation camps at the site. The Court ordered that every head of the family be persuaded to apply under the housing scheme.
The Court has directed the exercise to commence after 19th March, and a “practical solution” has to be found before 31st March. The Bench said, “Let camps be held till all families have applied. Let some counsellors, social activists and domain experts be engaged who can apprise the occupiers of the benefits of PM Awas Yojna.” Notably, councellors appearing for the petitioners requested to start the process for eligible families after ramzan, which is on 19th March.
The Court order laid down a clear judicial position that while humanitarian considerations and rehabilitation must be addressed, encroachment on public land cannot be allowed to override infrastructure expansion projects.
