The Ansari family’s purchase of a house in their own neighbourhood led to months of harassment, violence and intimidation under the shadow of Gujarat’s Disturbed Areas Act. The conflict between the Muslim buyers and the Hindu sellers ended in tragedy last month, when their teenage daughter died by suicide, naming the sellers in a note.
At the heart of this dispute is the Disturbed Areas Act, a Gujarat law introduced in 1991 to prevent “distress sales” of property in communally sensitive areas. Under the Act, sales across communities require prior approval from the district collector. In practice, critics argue, it has become a tool to restrict Muslim families from moving into Hindu-majority neighbourhoods.
Kaleem Siddiqui, a social activist who has monitored Saniya’s case, believes that such acts are being deployed to deter Muslims from moving out of ghettos and claiming spaces. Siddiqui told The Wire, “Instead of protecting vulnerable families, the law is weaponised to deny them agency. It tells Muslims: you may have the money, but you cannot choose where to live.”
16/09/2025