‘Selective’ demolition drive in Kashmir’s Sonmarg leads to protests
In a bid to restore the pristine glory of tourist resort Sonmarg, the authorities Wednesday launched a massive operation against violators and demolished scores of illegal structures in the golden meadow and its adjacent areas following reports of gross violation of the master plan in Kashmir’s Ganderbal district.
Reports said that Sonmarg Development Authority officials led by its Chief Executive officer, Zulfikar Muhammad Khan, assisted by police arrived in the morning and razed the unauthorized structures to ground. Despite facing stiff resistance from some locals, the SDA and demolishing team did not stop and dismantled all the illegal structures.
A SDA official said that several illegal structures had come up in the area which were dismantled on Wednesday. The official said that a large contingent of police was deployed in the area to maintain law and order and to thwart resistance from vested interests.
Sources said that the road leading to this summer resort was blocked by police using barricades to restrict the movement of people for hours.
However, locals alleged that all the ‘big fish’ were spared and only the structures of minnows were razed to ground.
Local village council head Nazir Ahmad Sheikh said some influential persons with political backing have raised illegal structures on the state land in Sonmarg including Gadkul, Lashpather, Sarbal and Gadibal without having the permission.
Sheikh alleged that main violators who have constructed hotels on state-land were spared and no action against them was initiated. “One fails to understand why their hotels were not demolished,” he questioned.
Another local, Abdul Ahad Sheikh whose shop was demolished at Gadibal said that he had constructed his shop in the year 2003 when the development authority did not exist. He said that despite constructing shop on his own land, the authorities in a bid to mislead government dismantled his shop without any legal justification. Abdul alleged that the structures of main violators were spared and those of poor were demolished.
Locals held protest demonstration against the SDA for not demolishing the illegal structures of the persons having political backing. The protesters accused SDA of having an ‘unholy nexus’ with the ‘big fish’ who according to them are the biggest violators. “Why poor are always targeted and why no action is taken against well-to-do and influential people,” the protesters said.
The locals threatened that if all the illegal structures were not demolished within two days they will raise their structures again and will intensify protest against the SDA for sparing influential people.
“Chief Executive Officer, SDA should approach us and we will show him who are the main violators and who have turned Sonmarg into a concrete-jungle,” said Mushtaq Ahmad, a local.
