NNWN / New Delhi, 2014-04-182014-04-18, 19:56:12

Housing and Land Rights Network (HLRN) launched its new publication titled, How to Respond to Forced Evictions: A Handbook for India in an event in New Delhi. The experts in the panel discussion also rue the fact the government has failed to protect the peoples’ rights. 

Justice A.P. Shah, former Chief Justice of the High Court of Delhi and Chairperson, Law Commission of India, released the Handbook and strongly criticised the Indian state for its inability to control forced evictions, which are carried out across the country without due process and adherence to the law.

“Those living in informal settlements help the rest of the city to live a decent life. They deserve protection and respect of the right to life and dignity, which the Constitution of India guarantees them”, he said.

Explaining the rationale behind the publication, Shivani Chaudhry, Executive Director, HLRN, said that the fact that the organizations  need to publish a book on how to deal with forced evictions, indicates a glaring failure of the Indian state to protect the human rights of its people, especially the most marginalised.

“Since independence, at least 70 million people have been displaced across India. A large majority of them have no access to remedy and have to contend with perpetual homelessness and insecure living conditions. Recognising the human rights violations inherent in acts of forced eviction and the virtual impunity of the state, often in collusion with the private sector, HLRN has produced this Handbook to assist affected persons and to help end the widespread practice of forced evictions”, she said.

The HLRN Handbook provides information on national and international laws and policies, which protect the human right to adequate housing as well as other human rights in the event of a forced eviction. It explains the international guidelines that must be followed by state and non-state entities to protect human rights before, during, and after evictions. It also suggests strategies, mechanisms, tools, and actors to engage with, in order to prevent forced evictions and seek justice. The Handbook can be used by communities threatened with evictions, displaced persons, human rights organizations, human rights defenders, and academic and independent institutions.