The JCB bulldozer, brought in for Monday's anti-encroachment drive in Shaheen Bagh, has now left the area and moved towards Sarita Vihar. The 'illegal encroachment' i.e. an iron structure or a shuttering or formwork in front of a building was manually removed by the people even as a JCB bulldozer stood by during the proposed demolition drive. However, the situation remains tense as the area is jam packed with hundreds of people moving around.
Police, along with para military forces, could also be seen moving forward. Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party MLA Amanatullah Khan, who is also on the spot, interacted with the officials. The people raised slogans in favour of the AAP MLA. While speaking to media, Khan stated that he had himself inspected the whole area and spoken to every official, including the traffic police. "I had, with my own JCB, removed a toilet that was illegally constructed outside a mosque.
This is just vendetta politics. Just tell me where the encroachment is. If still there is an illegal structure. Tell me, I will myself remove it. I am the local MLA," the AAP MLA said. Even the locals said that all the illegal structures in the area were already removed by the people just a few days back. Notably, Monday's demolition drive comes 19 days after a similar drive was conducted in the communal violence-hit Jahangirpuri area of the city. In that drive, several illegal structures, including cold drink booths and shops, were demolished.