Bulldozing poor families in rainy season is cruelty, not justice

During the rainy season, demolishing small huts and shelters and forcing poor farmers, laborers, Dalits, and landless families onto the streets is not fair in any way.

When struggling families are trying to protect their children under leaking tin roofs, the sound of bulldozers not only destroys their homes but also takes away their dignity. It is true that under the name of squatters, some opportunists have taken advantage of land encroachment for profit. But punishing genuine families who have lived and worked on that land for decades is inhumane. It is the state’s duty to separate the fake from the real victims, but choosing the easy way of using bulldozers shows weak leadership.

The constitution guarantees citizens the right to housing and land. But in practice, when the state destroys the homes of the poor to show its power, it goes against the spirit of the constitution. This has made the poor more hopeless and weakened their trust in the state.

Everyone agrees that to make cities clean and beautiful, riverside huts need to be managed, junkyards moved outside the capital, and slaughterhouses controlled. But while doing so, the state must also provide alternatives. What happens to families when their shelters are destroyed? Where do workers go when junkyards are relocated? What jobs will people do when slaughterhouses are shut down? These questions must be answered.

The solutions are clear:

1. Properly identify real victims and separate them from fake claimants.
2. Instead of forcing evictions immediately, wait until the rainy season is over and run proper resettlement programs.
3. Give land ownership documents to landless families who have been living and farming there for generations.
4. Local governments should bring long-term housing policies so poor families can live legally.
5. Move forward with dialogue and participation, not bulldozers.

Everyone wants a modern, clean, and well-managed city, but it is wrong to put all the burden on the poor. Until the state brings proper plans with alternatives, the roar of bulldozers will not be justice—it will only be cruelty.