A day after his house was demolished by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) as part of its anti-encroachment drive in Khajuri Khas in northeast Delhi, Vaqeel Hasan, one of the Uttarkashi Tunnel rescuers, refused to budge from the debris of the place that had been his home for years.

According to the DDA, the house was an illegal structure and they conducted the demolition drive to remove encroachment from its acquired land in the village Khajuri Khas in northeast Delhi. The land was part of planned development land, the DDA officials said. It insisted that the house was an illegal structure it had attempted to demolish in the past as well.

Hasan, who earned fame in November last year after leading a team of rat-hole miners that helped rescue 41 trapped workers in Uttarakhand, reiterated, “Only my house was targeted. There are other buildings around, nothing has been done to them,” Indian Express reported.

Also Read: DDA demolishes house of rat-hole miner who helped rescue 41 workers from Uttarkashi tunnel

Insisting that no notice was given to him ahead of the demolition, Hasan said the authority had tried to demolish his house in 2016 as well. “They asked for money last time; I paid. But now I am unable to because I am barely able to cover my daily expenses with the work we do,” Hasan told IE.

As Hasan said he “won’t move”, Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena assured he would be provided with a house. “I was told about it (the demolition)… we will definitely compensate. He will be given a house,” he told reporters.

Northeast Delhi MP Manoj Tiwari also said a house would be provided to Hasan under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY). “There were some legal issues concerning the house… He will be given a house very soon,” Tiwari told PTI.

The BJP leader admitted that during a felicitation function last year, he had promised Hasan that the house would not be demolished.

Also Read: Uttarkashi Tunnel Collapse: Rescue operation to evacuate 41 workers at Silkyara tunnel enters final phase

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“Yes, I did promise him…But when I looked into the matter, I realised there were several problems,” he added. On Tiwari’s promise, Hasan said he had not been spoken to in person or given anything in writing.

The demolition drive on Thursday was conducted to remove multiple illegal structures in Khajuri Khas area. Vaqeel Hasan accused the authorities of demolishing his house without any prior notice, adding that his house was the “only award” he wanted in return for the Silkyara tunnel rescue mission.

Vaqeel Hasan’s rat-hole mining team played a vital role in the Silkyara rescue mission in Uttarakhand, in which 41 workers were rescued after a battle of 16 days. The rat-hole miners helped in cutting through the rubble to help take the trapped workers out.