The Supreme Court on Monday came down heavily on the Samajwadi Party, criticising it for “fraudulently occupying” municipal premises in Uttar Pradesh’s Pilibhit for a mere ₹115 per month, calling it a “clear misuse of political power.”
A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi rebuked the party for using “muscle power” and “official position” to retain control over the civic property despite an eviction order issued by the Nagarpalika Parishad.
“This is not a case of fraudulent allotment but of fraudulent occupation. You are a political party. You misused official position and political power to occupy the space. When action comes, you start remembering everything,” the bench observed.
Senior advocate Siddharth Dave, representing the Samajwadi Party, argued that the party had been regularly paying rent and had also filed a civil suit seeking an injunction against the eviction. However, the bench remained unconvinced. “Have you ever heard of office space in a municipal area being rented for ₹115? This is a clear case of abuse of power,” the court remarked.
Dave requested a six-week stay on eviction, but the bench refused, stating that the party was currently an “unauthorised occupant” and reiterated that the matter involved not fraudulent allotment but fraudulent occupation.
When the counsel claimed the party was being unfairly targeted, the court advised that a writ petition could be filed before the High Court to highlight any similar cases of illegal occupation. “We will be welcoming this step,” the bench added.
The apex court chose not to examine the merits of the petition and directed that the civil suit filed by the party be decided at the earliest by the appropriate forum.
The party was challenging the July 2 decision of the Allahabad High Court, which declined to hear its plea against the eviction. Earlier, on June 16, the Supreme Court had dismissed a similar plea filed by the Samajwadi Party’s Pilibhit district president, Anand Singh Yadav, against a high court order restraining further petitions related to the same issue.
The Supreme Court also noted that the party had delayed its appeal by 998 days against a December 1, 2020 order of the high court, which had earlier rejected its plea challenging the eviction.
According to the party, the civic body had issued the eviction notice on November 12, 2020, without giving it an opportunity to present its case.
Despite these claims, the top court declined to intervene and granted the party liberty to approach the high court afresh against the municipal body’s decision.
