India's Anti-Encroachment Drive In Mumbai Turns Violent, Two Mosques Demolished

2026-05-21 02:45:09

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) A day after violent clashes broke out between the police and protesters at the Garib Nagar slum colony outside Bandra station in Mumbai, the authorities continued their anti-encroachment demolition drive on Thursday.

The Bombay High Court has approved the five-day operation to clear 500 unauthorised structures over 5,200 sq m of railway land east of the station.

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Some of the protesters hurled stones and other objects at the police on Wednesday evening, as they went about clearing the huts. More than a dozen persons, including policemen were injured in the demonstrations.

The attacks began after Western Railway officials started demolishing what they described as illegal prayer structures outside the station, but the demonstrations accused them of pulling down mosques that have been there for several years.

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A railway spokesperson told the media that the operation was executed carefully, ensuring no persons were injured. He said the demolition has been pending for long and the court took almost a decade to finalise it.

“The area is very sensitive and the court gave us clear instructions. We also took care of the humanitarian aspects,” he added. The court had given protection to 100 structures (whose residents would be shifted to other areas before the huts are demolished) but allowed the authorities to clear the rest.

The case relating to the demolition of slums in the western Mumbai suburb has dragged on for a decade, both in the high court and even the Supreme Court. Many of the residents in the area accused the railway personnel and even the police of not taking care of women, children and the aged.

Tension continued on Thursday, but the police said things were under control.

Bandra, along with the nearby Dharavi slum colony, is at the heart of a multi-billion redevelopment project taken up by the authorities. It includes development of the Mumbai terminal of the ambitious Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet train project, which will begin at the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) and head northwards through a 20-km-long tunnel. The project is expected to take off in 2027.

The Maharashtra government plans to relocate 700,000 slumdwellers in the city under its slum cluster redevelopment scheme, which will see the“integration and sustainable development” of the slums in the metropolis. Between 5.5 million and 6 million residents live in sprawling slum colonies in the metropolitan city, home to over 18 million people.