Hyderabad defence land demolition began in Sikh Village on Friday as the Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB) removed unauthorised commercial structures from a four-acre parcel of B-3 defence land, following a court ruling in the board’s favour earlier this week. The property housed KJR Gardens and Viceroy Garden function halls, which SCB officials said were being used commercially even though the land was earmarked for residential use.
The demolition operation began at about 5:30 am. Locals initially resisted the action, prompting the deployment of police at the site to prevent law-and-order problems. The SCB said the action followed a legal dispute that began in 1996, when the board approached the court seeking the removal of the function hall structures.
“The board had approached the court in 1996 seeking demolition of the function hall and has pursued the case since then. The court ruled in the board’s favour earlier this week, paving the way for the demolition,” SCB cantonment engineer Ch Uma Shankar said, according to the report.
SCB chief executive officer Arvind Dwivedi said the board was identifying locations where unauthorised activities were taking place on defence land. He said action was being taken when court orders were pronounced, while disputes in some other cases remained pending before courts.
The demolition brings attention to the complex land records and occupancy arrangements governing properties in Secunderabad Cantonment. B-3 is a category of cantonment land that includes properties held under lease or old grant terms. These properties are recorded in the General Land Register, while the rights of occupants are governed by the applicable grant conditions.
In the case of old grant properties, the land may vest with the Union government, while occupants retain specific rights subject to the terms of the grant. SCB officials said land earmarked for residential use could not be used for commercial establishments without the required permissions.
The operation is also linked to the wider extent of old grant properties within the cantonment. Dwivedi said there were around 120 old grant bungalows spread across approximately 400 acres of defence land. However, he added that the board did not maintain an active record of every individual property.
That gap in property-level records adds an administrative dimension to the enforcement challenge. The SCB has said it is acting against alleged unauthorised uses, but the process depends on the land category, grant conditions, permissions and the status of ongoing legal disputes. The board’s latest action followed a court order rather than an immediate administrative decision alone.
The demolition therefore marks both the enforcement of a specific court-backed claim and a continuing effort to regulate land use across the cantonment. SCB officials said action would continue in cases where court orders were pronounced, while disputes still pending in court would remain subject to their respective legal proceedings.
