The Dehradun administration and revenue department demolished a mazar within the Doon Medical College Hospital premises on Friday, marking the second night-time demolition of an Islamic structure in Uttarakhand within a week.
Earlier this week, the decades-old mazar of Syed Masoom Shah Miyan was demolished in Rudrapur in Udham Singh Nagar by the government as part of a road widening project by the NHAI.
At 2 a.m., bulldozers rolled into Doon Hospital to demolish a century-old shrine honoring Sufi saint Baba Kamaal Shah, with the administration declaring it an illegal structure.
According to information, this action was carried out by a joint team comprising the Municipal Corporation, Public Works Department (PWD), Doon Hospital administration, and the district administration.
According to the Dehradun Municipal Corporation Commissioner Namami Bansal, the mazar was on the land allotted to the hospital and a complaint was received on the CM helpline portal.
“The Doon Medical College had also flagged the existence of this structure. On Friday, the administration asked for excavators and we provided them. The revenue department carried out the drive,” she told The Indian Express.
Additional Director of the Directorate of Medical Education, Dr. Ravindra Bisht, said that a resident had filed a complaint about the mazar four months ago.
Following this, the district administration launched an inquiry, involving the Revenue Department, medical college authorities, Municipal Corporation, and PWD.
“The administration asked us for documents related to the mazar, but we did not have any. We informed them, and even four days ago, an inspection of the site was conducted. Last night, excavators were sent, and the structure was demolished,” Bisht said.
Officials added that a notice had been served to the caretaker, but no response was received.
Meanwhile, locals claimed that the mazar was a duly registered Waqf property and described the demolition as a violation of the Supreme Court’s order concerning Waqf properties.
Waqf Board Chairman Shadab Shams confirmed that the shrine was officially listed with the Waqf Board.
Congress leader Suryakant Dhasmana said, “If there is any illegal structure, it should be demolished. However, if the agenda is only to target madrasas, the government seems intent on creating divisions in society by any means. The real agenda appears to be dividing society.”
Meanwhile, BJP media in-charge Manveer Singh Chauhan said the party welcomed the demolition of the “illegal” mazar at Doon Hospital, asserting that it “will not allow any conspiracy to alter the character and demography of Devbhoomi.”
He added that action had already been taken against over 600 illegal religious encroachments and madrasas, reflecting the government’s firm commitment to the issue.
