Lucknow: The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court has termed the eviction of shopkeepers in Ayodhya for the construction of a 300-bed super-speciality hospital without rehabilitation or compensation as “highly condemnable”, observing that such action affects their right to livelihood and violates Articles 19 and 21 of the Constitution.The court noted that the shops had been allotted on lease and the occupants had acquired the status of lessees. Therefore, directing them to vacate the premises without first terminating their leases was unjustified.A division bench of Justice Shekhar B Saraf and Justice Amitabh Kumar Rai observed that while the construction of the hospital was in the public interest, shopkeepers dependent on their businesses for their livelihood could not be evicted without alternative arrangements being made for them.The bench also underlined the need to rehabilitate the affected shopkeepers or compensate them for the losses suffered.It directed the state’s medical and health department to file a counter-affidavit within three weeks detailing the steps proposed for the rehabilitation of the shopkeepers. The affidavit must be filed by an officer not below the rank of secretary.The order came on a petition filed by Mohammad Naeem and five others. The petitioners submitted that the Sitapur Eye Hospital Society, Faizabad, had allotted shops to them on 30-year leases in 2000.After completing the required formalities, possession of the shops was handed over to them on Feb 28, 2000. Under the applicable rules, the leases were to be renewed every 30 years.However, the Ayodhya district magistrate issued a notice on June 26, 2025, directing the shopkeepers to vacate the premises within 15 days, stating that the land and shops had been transferred to the medical and family welfare department.The petitioners had earlier approached the high court, which directed the authorities to maintain status quo until a decision was taken on their representation. Subsequently, in an order dated July 31, 2026, the DM said the land was required for the construction of a hospital and that the shopkeepers had no right to continue occupying the premises.The high court has fixed Nov 16 as the next date of hearing.
