The Supreme Court today issued a contempt notice to the Assam government in response to a plea filed by 47 people accusing the state of disobeying the top court's directive that no demolitions be done without the court's sanction.

A bench consisting of Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan mandated that the state answer in three weeks and that the status quo be kept in place till the subsequent hearing.

The petitioners allege that despite Supreme Court's earlier ruling and the Assam Advocate General's September 20 guarantee to the Gauhati High Court that no legal action would be taken against them until their petitions were settled, the authorities destroyed their homes.

The lawsuit concerns the use of bulldozers on 47 households in the Kamrup region of Assam, specifically in Kachutoli Pathar village and surrounding areas. The petitioners contend that they have resided there for many years in accordance with contracts they had with the original landowners.

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They argue that they have not broken any laws and that their occupancy was allowed by preexisting agreements, refuting the state's claim that they are "illegal occupants" on tribal property.

According to the petition, officials disregarded legal procedures, such as the need to give tenants a month's notice to vacate before serving them with an eviction notice.

It further contends that the demolitions violated the residents' fundamental rights under Articles 14, 15, and 21 of the Constitution, which protect their equality before the law as well as their right to life and personal liberty, because they were carried out without providing the residents with a fair hearing and depriving them of their homes and means of subsistence.

The Supreme Court's judgment on September 17 outlawed demolitions across the country without prior judicial clearance, with the exception of situations involving encroachments on public roads, walkways, railway lines, or water bodies.

Despite this, the present contempt petition stems from the Assam authorities reportedly marking the petitioners' dwellings for demolition without prior notification.