To tackle illegalities, stick to the law

Last fortnight, communal violence broke out in Haryana's Nuh district that soon spread in the form of riots and mob destruction of private and public property in other parts of the state, including Gurgaon. As with any riot or social disruption, it's difficult to say precisely when, how and who started the proverbial fire. In situations such as these, the administration and the police's primary job is to ensure law and order, safety for all, and bringing the perpetrators of violence to the dock. Even as the police made arrests pertaining to the mob violence, it 'parallelly' oversaw the demolition of more than 750 homes and shops in Nuh and Gurgaon that were reportedly illegal encroaching on public lands. They overwhelmingly belonged to members of the Muslim community with no connection to the riots.

On Monday, the Punjab and Haryana High Court found this 'forced correlation', if not direct link, between acts of communal violence and illegal encroachment suspect. Pulling up the state government, it said that its actions in Nuh raise questions on whether the bulldozed buildings were being targeted under the guise of a law-and-order problem and an exercise of 'ethnic cleansing' was being conducted by the state. This is fierce calling out, but one that needed to be made. It also stalled the demolition drive and asked Haryana to furnish an affidavit on how many buildings have been demolished and whether notices were issued before doing so. Even action against illegalities need to be legal.

The court's suo motu observations are welcome. Haryana must answer them clearly to ensure long-term social peace, without which there can be no economic growth. Tackling lawbreakers must be conducted without bias and without subverting the law.