A mosque located within the District Magistrate’s office complex in Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur was demolished during an overnight operation after the City Magistrate declared it an illegal encroachment on government land and imposed a fine of approximately Rs 6.41 crore on those occupying it. Samajwadi Party MP Iqra Hasan subsequently alleged that she had been placed under house arrest at her residence in Kairana.
Hasan, who represents the Kairana Lok Sabha constituency, said a large contingent of police personnel reached her home while she was preparing to travel to Saharanpur to meet government officials regarding the demolition and raise concerns affecting local residents.
“To prevent me from going to Saharanpur last night, a large police force was deployed at my Kairana residence and I was placed under house arrest,” Hasan said. Saharanpur district falls within the Kairana parliamentary constituency.
The 32-year-old MP questioned whether an elected representative was now being prevented from meeting officials to discuss issues affecting people in her constituency.
She said that in a democracy, elected representatives are expected to voice public concerns and argued that stopping her from doing so amounted to suppressing that voice.
WHY WAS THE MOSQUE DEMOLISHED?
The demolition came after a complaint filed by Vikas Tyagi, a former provincial coordinator of the Bajrang Dal, who alleged that the mosque had been illegally constructed within the DM office complex in Saharanpur.
The complaint further alleged that the premises were being used for commercial activities, including a post office and rooms rented out to outsiders, while the mosque committee was reportedly collecting rent from them.
Following a hearing, City Magistrate Kuldeep Singh directed that the structure be demolished immediately. According to the administration, the action was required because the alleged encroachment and activities taking place on the premises posed concerns regarding the security and confidentiality of the government office.
SAMAJWADI PARTY ATTACKS BJP GOVERNMENT
The Samajwadi Party accused the Yogi Adityanath-led government of preventing Hasan from travelling to Saharanpur in an attempt to stop her from raising the issue of the mosque’s demolition.
SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, in a post on Saturday, said maintaining social harmony was the government’s biggest responsibility as well as an achievement.
The Saharanpur demolition comes amid a broader series of actions across Uttar Pradesh involving religious structures that authorities have identified as illegal or constructed on encroached government land.
Several such demolition drives have also come under legal scrutiny, particularly over whether authorities followed safeguards laid down by courts before carrying out such action.
