Key Points
A uniquethree-decade-oldstate lawmandates thatproperty dealsmust beapproved by the district collectorin areas marked as disturbed, and while it does not expressly mention religion, it is usually invoked in cases of Muslim-Hindu transactions...
It is this law, the Gujarat Prohibition of Transfer of Immovable Property and Provision for Protection of Tenants from Eviction from Premises in Disturbed Areas Actor just theDisturbed Areas Actthat became the battleground for five Hindu neighbours after the sale...
The ensuing legal battle stretched for four years, with the neighbours even approachingthenchief minister Vijay Rupani.Finally, in November 2023, the Gujarat High Court upheld the sale,rulingthatthe goal of the Disturbed Areas Act is to not to assess fears of law-and-order deterioration but to decide if it is a distress sale...
Later, as the dust settled, the Disturbed Areas Act was used tostifle themobilityof Muslims seeking to move to better neighbourhoods,which tend to have more Hindu residents.This, in turn,exacerbated the issueof Muslim ghettoisation...
Expertsarguethat the law hasheightened communal divisions, making mixed neighbourhoods virtually nonexistent and fostering a class struggle that disproportionately impacts poorer Muslims, relegating them to the periphery.But even keeping aside this law, spatial boundariesbetween communities have become a way of life in Gujarat...
