SRINAGAR: A major demolition drive carried out in the Sidhra area on the outskirts of Jammu on Tuesday snowballed into a political controversy, with Minister for Forest, Ecology and Environment Javed Ahmed Rana terming the operation “illegal and unjust”, ordering an inquiry into the incident and seeking action against officials involved in the exercise.
The Minister also accused police personnel of using force against residents and appealed to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to order registration of an FIR against officers allegedly involved in stopping people from offering prayers during the operation.
Speaking to reporters after visiting the demolition site and meeting affected families, Rana said those responsible for the drive would not be spared.
“This was absolutely an illegal and unjust action. I’ve ordered an inquiry and will not spare those involved in this illegal act. I will take action against the officials of the forest department involved in the eviction drive,” he said.
Rana said he would take up the issue with Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to seek justice for the nomadic families residing in the area for decades.
Claiming that the land belonged to local residents and not the forest department, the Minister said revenue records available with him suggested the land was revenue land.
“As per revenue records available with me, this is revenue land belonging to these people and not forest land,” he said, adding that the affected families would be compensated and rehabilitated through the Tribal Affairs Department.
The controversy erupted after a large-scale anti-encroachment drive was carried out in the Raika Bandi forest belt in the Sidhra-Mahamaya area on the outskirts of Jammu.
Officials said around 20 to 30 structures, including both kaccha and concrete constructions, were demolished during the operation and nearly 60 kanals of prime forest land in Compartment No. 66/B was reclaimed.
The joint operation was conducted by officials of the Forest Department, Forest Protection Force, Revenue Department, police and district administration in the lower Shivalik range near Mahamaya Mandir and opposite Environment Park under the jurisdiction of Police Station Bagh-e-Bahu.
Heavy deployment of police and security personnel was made during the nearly four-hour-long operation, which officials said was aimed at removing alleged encroachments from ecologically sensitive forest zones around Jammu city.
According to officials, the reclaimed land was worth crores of rupees and “illegal” constructions in the Mahamaya forest belt had increased rapidly over the past few years.
“There were hardly a few structures in the Mahamaya forest belt five to six years ago, but now scores of illegal structures have come up while new constructions continue,” an official was quoted as saying.
Authorities maintained that the occupants had already been notified to vacate the land and asserted that no further encroachment on forest land would be allowed.
Officials further said the forest department would now undertake mapping of tribal settlements and other habitations in forest areas across Jammu to prevent further encroachments.
“All such areas will be photographed and videographed and records will be uploaded on official websites after verification of documents,” an official said.
The operation, however, triggered protests from affected families, who alleged that the demolitions were carried out without prior notice and termed the action selective and unjustified.
Several residents claimed that they had been living in the area for generations and alleged that authorities demolished entire residential clusters in the name of anti-encroachment and anti-drug operations.
“They conducted this drive in the name of containing the menace of Chitta. Was the whole colony involved in it? Why were all houses demolished? This is injustice,” one aggrieved resident said.
Families also claimed that their names figured in electoral records dating back to 1952 and alleged that they had been residing in the area for decades.
The issue drew sharp reactions from political parties across Jammu and Kashmir, with leaders accusing the administration of targeting poor tribal and nomadic families.
National Conference MP Mian Altaf Ahmed condemned the demolitions and termed the action “high-handedness”.
I strongly condemn the demolition of several residential structures belonging to poor tribal people in Sidhra Jammu today, who have been putting up there for decades. This high handedness by the administration and forest Deptt is unacceptable.
— Mian Altaf Ahmad (@MianAltafAhmad) May 19, 2026
“The tribal community in Jammu and Kashmir is already living under fear and insecurity due to repeated such incidents. This latest demolition has sent shock waves across the nomadic community,” he said while seeking rehabilitation of affected families.
CPI(M) leader and MLA Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami described the action as “unjustified and insensitive”, saying Gujjar and Bakarwal families dependent on cattle rearing were already living in difficult circumstances.
“The affected families have been staying in these areas for years. Any move that leaves poor people without shelter must be viewed seriously and handled with humanity,” Tarigami said.
Apni Party president Syed Mohammad Altaf Bukhari termed the drive “ruthless” and questioned the legality of demolitions allegedly carried out without due process.
The manner in which the Sidhra demolition drive was carried out is deeply concerning.
How could the authorities allow such a brutal and arbitrary demolition of the residential dwellings?
Reports suggest that the operation continued for nearly four hours in an area largely…
— Altaf Bukhari (@SMAltafBukhari) May 19, 2026
“The most disturbing aspect is the growing perception that this drive was carried out with bias, targeting a particular community,” Bukhari said, urging the Chief Minister to order a transparent inquiry.
Peoples Conference president Sajad Gani Lone also criticised the operation and questioned who had authorised the demolitions.
The news coming in from Sidra is disturbing to say the least. There have been demolitions yet again. Can the government please for once treat the matter with seriousness that it deserves and explain who ordered the demolitions. If it is not them then who. And what are they going…
— Sajad Lone (@sajadlone) May 19, 2026
“The news coming in from Sidhra is disturbing to say the least. Can the government explain who ordered the demolitions?” Lone asked.
Senior Peoples Conference leader Imran Reza Ansari said the demolitions had triggered outrage across Jammu and Kashmir and questioned how people were allowed to stay in the area for decades if the structures were illegal.
MLA Doda Mehraj Malik also attacked the government over the issue, saying it could not continue distancing itself from actions carried out by departments functioning under its authority.
