On Wednesday, the Supreme Court of India adjourned till July 13, the hearing on petitions by the Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind that alleged due process was not followed during the recent demolition of some private properties in Prayagraj and Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh.
The apex court scheduled on July 13 the hearing of a plea filed by Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind accusing the Uttar Pradesh government of indulging in "retributive" demolition of the properties of persons allegedly linked to the violence following the Prophet remarks row.
A vacation bench of Justices Surya Kant and JB Pardiwala fixed the date after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Uttar Pradesh government, sought more time to reply to additional facts brought on record by the petitioner body.
Earlier, on June 16, the court had told the Uttar Pradesh government that demolitions could happen only in accordance with the provisions of the law and could not be retaliatory.
This was denied by the Uttar Pradesh government, which said the action was “carried out by the Kanpur Development Authority and Prayagraj Development Authority strictly in accordance with the Uttar Pradesh Urban Planning and Development Act, 1972,” and “had no relation to the riots”.
