Sajad Chopan
Officials on Sunday demolished two structures and sealed more than 61 shops in the Banihal area of Ramban district of Jammu Kashmir.
As per the district administration, the shops were constructed illegally on “state land”, so all the shops were sealed and handed over to the custody of MC Banihal.
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Locals told The Kashmiriyat that on Sunday morning sealed 61 shops built on state land inside Hospital Street were sealed as part of an anti-encroachment drive, which has been going on in the Jammu Kashmir region.
A team of the revenue department headed by the Tehsildar demolished two structures including a medical shop amid heavy police deployment, officials said, adding that, more than 61 shops were handed over to the Municipal Committee Banihal and the future course of the shops will be decided later, a revenue official told The Kashmiriyat over the phone.
Meanwhile, Locals said that shopkeepers woke up the entire night to remove their goods from their shops ahead of the eviction drive. A Local activist Alyas Banihali who was protesting against the proposed drive was taken into detention by Police from the site where the activist was holding the sit-in protest.
Alyas is known for his rights activism in the Ramban district. He was also detained after he openly opposed the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu Kashmir on August 05, 2019.
Meanwhile, a complete shutdown was observed in the town against the eviction drive.
Paramilitary forces have been deployed in Banihal to avert any untoward incident.
The drive was launched by district administrations across Jammu Kashmir on the orders of JK admin to remove “encroachments” over state land.