The Calcutta High Court has directed the West Bengal government to follow the law before removing tea workers or demolishing homes for a proposed land port in Jaigaon, Alipurduar, ruling that even alleged illegal occupants cannot be evicted arbitrarily.
A division bench of Justices Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya and Arjun Ray Mukherjee made the observations while hearing a petition filed by the West Bengal Tea Workers Association. The petition challenges the alleged eviction of tea workers and residents from land identified for the border infrastructure project.
The court said a government project undertaken in the public interest must still comply with the law. It also made clear that the administration could not use bulldozers to remove people sitting in protest without following due process.
The court’s remarks addressed residents living in hutments and other structures on tea garden land. Justice Bhattacharyya said people living in small huts and those living in large houses were entitled to equal legal protection, adding that the protection of hutment residents required particular attention because they might not have anyone else to support them.
The state government told the court that no action was being taken against people who had permanent residences. Its position was that the residents were obstructing construction by holding protests and creating disturbances at the project site. The state also referred to an earlier court direction under which a first information report was registered and several protesters were arrested.
Responding to the state’s submissions, the bench said that even people sitting in a protest had to be dealt with according to law. The judges questioned whether trying to protect one’s roof could itself be considered wrongdoing. The court also stressed that the unequal social and economic circumstances of people living in informal settlements had to be considered while ensuring equal access to legal protection.
The High Court has allowed the state to continue work on the land port, but stated that advancing a government project did not permit the authorities to disregard existing law. If any house or structure has to be demolished, or if anyone has to be removed from their place of residence, the administration must follow the applicable legal process.
The land acquisition process for the project resumed in July after remaining stalled for a long period. The proposed rehabilitation package includes compensation of Rs 5.5 lakh for permanent houses and Rs 1.8 lakh for temporary houses. It also provides for valuation of agricultural land and trees, along with priority in employment at the land port for educated members of affected families.
However, the compensation position for tea workers living on government land remains unclear, according to the report. Residents say their ancestors came to the area to work in the tea gardens and that their families have lived there for generations without receiving land titles. Since July, residents have held protests at different points in the project area, while police have arrested several protesters.
The court’s direction leaves the land port project open to continuation but places the responsibility for any displacement on the state’s compliance with the relevant legal procedures.
