Amnesty International demands Indian authorities immediately stop unjust targeted demolition of Muslim properties
India’s widespread unlawful demolitions of Muslims’ homes, businesses and places of worship through the use of JCB bulldozers and other machines must stop immediately, Amnesty International said in two companion reports released on February 7.
Amnesty International has called on the Government of India and state governments to immediately halt the de facto policy of demolishing people’s homes as a form of extra-judicial punishment and ensure nobody is made homeless as a result of forced evictions.
It also called on authorities to offer adequate compensation to all those affected by the demolitions and ensure those responsible for these violations are held to account.
“The unlawful demolition of Muslim properties by the Indian authorities, peddled as ‘bulldozer justice’ by political leaders and media, is cruel and appalling. Such displacement and dispossession is deeply unjust, unlawful and discriminatory,” said Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General.
Between April and June 2022, Amnesty International researchers found that authorities in five states carried out demolitions as a ‘punishment’ following episodes of communal violence or protests against discrimination by those in authority against Muslims.
Amnesty International found that Muslim-concentrated localities were chosen for demolitions, while Muslim-owned properties were selectively targeted in diverse areas. Nearby Hindu-owned properties, particularly in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, were left untouched.
