India demolishes 40 Muslim homes in BJP ruled state
Demolition in Uttar Pradesh deepens fears of state-led persecution as Hindu nationalist policies target Muslim neighborhoods across India
NEW DELHI, India (MNTV) — More than 40 homes belonging to Muslim families were demolished in Shahjahanpur district of Uttar Pradesh, a northern Indian state governed by Hindu nationalist leader Yogi Adityanath, intensifying alarm over what rights groups describe as state-backed discrimination against minorities.
The operation took place in Roli Bori village, about 250 kilometers east of New Delhi, under heavy police protection. Officials claimed the land had been reclassified as a cremation ground, though earlier government records and court rulings listed it as inhabited, with legal leases issued to residents.
Additional District Magistrate Rajneesh Kumar Mishra defended the action, saying: “Approximately 6 hectares of land in Roli Bori village belongs to the cremation ground. Eviction proceedings were initiated, and when the owners refused to vacate, the demolition was carried out in the presence of police and administrative officials.”
But residents dispute that narrative, saying the land was legally inhabited for decades. Tasavvur Ali, husband of a district panchayat member, said: “A man from the Thakur community donated this land long ago for a cremation ground, but no funerals were ever performed here. In 1990 the land was registered as inhabited, and leases were allotted. Now suddenly the administration has reversed its own orders and demolished our homes.”
Community activists say the demolitions primarily affected Muslim households and followed demands from a local Hindu organization to vacate the land for religious use. “This action disproportionately affects the Muslim community, raising serious concerns about minority rights and administrative bias,” said a local activist.
Analysts note that Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, has become the epicenter of what they call “bulldozer politics” — demolitions used as instruments of control and intimidation under the guise of law enforcement.
Human-rights groups such as Amnesty International have warned that these actions reflect a broader pattern of state-led erasure of Muslim spaces across India.
For many in Roli Bori, the bulldozers flattened more than houses — they erased decades of belonging. The incident mirrors similar demolitions in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, deepening concern that India’s governance is shifting toward an openly majoritarian model where legality increasingly masks exclusion.
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