MHA's enemy property office surveys building in Kolkata’s Rajabazar

The Enemy Property Office under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) conducted a survey on Wednesday to assess the status of a building in Kolkata’s Rajabazar area. Around 100 police and CRPF personnel accompanied the survey team due to opposition from locals during previous attempts to conduct such surveys.

The building falls under the Enemy Property Act, of 1968, introduced after the Indo-Pak wars of 1965 and 1971 when many people migrated from India to Pakistan. The MHA aims to monetize these properties and generate revenue. An official from the MHA said, “We came to assess the status of the building, survey it, and gather details of the occupants.”

The survey was also intended to check if occupants wanted to come under the revised rent system, implemented via an online portal. The official explained that individual occupants could also purchase such properties if the valuation is less than Rs 1 crore, subject to a verification process.

Rajabazar, a minority-concentrated area in central Kolkata, houses one of the 96 identified enemy properties in the city. Across West Bengal, there are 4,500 enemy properties, with approximately 12,000 spread across India. These properties include land, buildings, bank accounts, shares, and other investments held by individuals or entities classified as enemies of the state.