Demanding a meeting within 24 hours to resolve the stand-off between shopkeepers and the municipal corporation officials at the “to be developed” Super Market in Dharwad, KPCC media analyst P.H. Neeralakeri has urged the municipal commissioner to suspend officials who, according to him, have violated the law while evicting shopkeepers.
Addressing presspersons along with some of the shopkeepers of Super Market in Dharwad on Thursday, Mr. Neeralakeri demanded that the shopkeepers against whom, he said, injustice has been meted out should be called for the meeting to find an amicable solution.
He also said that he will strongly condemn the “atrocities” on the street vendors operating in the Super Market area.
Mr. Neeralakeri said that starting from 1977, the municipal corporation has kept the issue pending without making honest attempts to resolve it. The main reason for the crisis is the lack of coordination between the officials which consequently has kept the problem unresolved.
“If we observe various orders of the High Court of Karnataka and the Supreme Court from 1986 to 2021 at various points of time, we see that in the Writ Petition (No 7466/1986) between Pragati Chikka Vartkara Sangha (Pragati Small Merchants Association) and the municipal corporation, the corporation has filed an undertaking stating that it will give adequate cooperation to the merchants,” he said.
The court has also observed that development should be taken up without affecting the day-to-day business and the municipal corporation should consider the petitioners plea regarding facilities. In this connection, two applications are pending before court, he said.
Mr. Neeralakeri also said that the police instead of protecting the interests of shopkeepers are helping the corporation carry out what he added “atrocities” by suddenly evicting them. “Without making alternative arrangements, evicting shopkeepers is a clear violation of court orders, urban development regulations and human rights,” he said.
He sought to know who will help the 70 shopkeepers who were evicted from the Super Market area without being provided any alternative arrangement and who will provide compensation to them.
Mr. Neeralakeri, along with Shivashankar Hampannavar, Shreeshailgouda Kamatar, Narayan Ladwa and others, demanded that action be taken against Assistant Municipal Commissioner Sabarad and Assistant Commissioner of Police Anusha G. for what he said violating the law while evicting shopkeepers.