The Land and Development Office has stayed the eviction and demolition process of Delhi's Khyber Pass area following intervention from the Delhi High Court. It hosts Paris Olympic 2024 medalists, Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh's coach, Samaresh Jung, and more than 200 other families, according to a Times of India report. (Medal Table | Schedule & Results | Full Coverage)
After guiding India's pistol shooters to two bronze medals in Paris, coach Samaresh Jung had expected a triumphant homecoming.
He was instead met with the shocking news that his several-decades-old home in the Khyber Pass area had been marked for demolition as an illegal encroachment on Ministry of Defence land. Jung and the over 200 other families residing there have appealed for more time to relocate.
Jung later filed a petition against the eviction in the Delhi high court, and the matter is scheduled for a hearing on August 5.
His family's home for nearly 75 years has been marked for demolition as an "illegal construction," with the coach given 48 hours to vacate the premises.
The coach, famously known as 'Goldfinger' for his Commonwealth Games triumphs, appealed for a grace period of two months to rehome.
He claims to have been a tenant on the property for decades, paying rent regularly.
Jung who was in Paris along with the shooting team returned from France to find the notice. “After the euphoria of Manu Bhaker winning two Olympic medals, I returned to the disheartening news that my house and locality is to be demolished in two days," he said. "There has been no proper information or notice. How can families living here for 75 years vacate by Sunday morning?”
The L&DO, under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, has declared the entire Khyber Pass colony an illegal settlement on Ministry of Defence land. The notice to vacate is immediate, an eviction that has left the residents in a shocked situation as they struggle to look for other means of shelter.
Although he is willing to abide by the law, Jung has appealed for reasonable time to relocate, wondering why the abrupt eviction order was effected in urgency.
