“The moment I heard I have to vacate my little shanty house and the slum within 24 hours, I could not sleep or eat anything. Where will I go with my family! I have to live on the streets if my house is demolished. My son is studying in Class 10 in a government school in Thubrahalli and has to appear for board exams soon. I can’t move to any other location, else my son will be forced to drop out! With assurances from several organisations I gained my composure and decided to fight back.” said Ms. Pakhi, a housekeeping worker in Thubrahalli.
The morning of 26 June 2022, started as usual for an inhabitant, Mr. Jahangir, in a sprawling slum in Kundanahalli, located in Mahadevpura Constituency in Bengaluru. Little did he know that what began as a normal day would soon turn out to be his nightmare in a matter of hours. The landowners told him to vacate the slum within 24 hours as has been ordered by state municipality officials.
Jahangir has been the resident of one of the slums in Thubrahalli for the past 11 years. The 43-year-old is a contract labourer in the tech city and is originally from Nadia District, West Bengal. Like thousands of others who reside in the slum, Jahangir came here to make a better living for his family. However, anxiety and fear loomed large over the 1000-odd families who reside in the slum. Most people residing there are migrants from different parts of West Bengal.
Soon fear and anxiety gave way to peaceful agitation. Representatives of a number of human rights organisations reached the spot. I and two staffs of ISI reached the spot by 7 in the morning. The residents decided to take out a peaceful protest in front of Mahadevapura municipality office. Thousands of slum-dwellers demanded, “Why this sudden demolition?” A 35-year-old Ms. Pompa holding her child in her lap asked the officials “Why is our house being demolished? Why are we being made homeless? Where will we go with our children?” Pompa is a domestic worker who works in nearby apartments in Thubrahalli.
Human rights organisations alleged that the action was illegal as there were neither eviction orders nor prior notices. Mr. Ajijul, an app based food delivery person asked “How can our homes be broken without prior notice.” The officials denied the allegations and said that the reason was to clear garbage in the area.
Eventually, the deadlock was broken with a reprieve for slum-dwellers and landlords who were instructed to clear the garbage, set right houses and provide basic amenities. While there is some respite for slum-dwellers, landowners say they are still under pressure to evict.
Rosey Mukherjee
Facilitator of Programmes, Labour Migration Unit