UP: Over 350 illegal religious structures removed along Nepal border

The Uttar Pradesh government on Sunday said that more than 350 unauthorised religious sites, including madrasas, mosques, mazars and Eidgahs, have been identified and subjected to sealing or demolition in recent days, an official statement issued in Lucknow said. Acting on Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's clear directive that no religious encroachment will be tolerated, the administration in districts such as Pilibhit, Shravasti, Balrampur, Bahraich, Siddharthnagar and Maharajganj has launched a sweeping campaign, it said. The authorities have systematically identified illegal structures and taken strict action, continuing operations even on Sunday.
On May 10 and 11, 104 madrasas, 1 mosque, 5 mazars and 2 Eidgahs built illegally on public and private land were identified in Shravasti. "All were issued notices and sealed. According to the District Magistrate, one illegal madrasa on public land was demolished and two unrecognised madrasas on private land were sealed. The local Land Management Committee has started procedures to remove other encroachments per the law," they said.
Sources said that in Bahraich, officials identified 13 madrasas, 8 mosques, 2 mazars and 1 Eidgah illegally constructed on government land. "After issuing notices, 5 were sealed and 11 were demolished, including 8 madrasas, 2 mosques and 1 mazar. Bsides, 171 illegal encroachments on government land within a 0–10 km radius from the Indo-Nepal border have already been removed," they said.
In Siddharthnagar, action was taken against 23 illegal structures.In Maharajganj’s Nautanwa tehsil, Parsamalik village, an unrecognized madrasa operating on Maktab land was shut down based on a report submitted by the District Minority Welfare Officer. The building’s keys were handed over to the local police station in-charge. So far, 29 madrasas and five mazars constructed through encroachment on public and private land have been demolished in the district. In past two days in Lakhimpur Kheri, two mosques, one Eidgah on public land along with eight madrasas on private land were found to be illegally constructed. In Balrampur, so far, 30 madrasas, 10 mazars and one Eidgah have been demolished.