India, May 8 -- After months of delay, repeated scrutiny by the Bombay High Court and a contempt warning issued by the Jewish Heritage Trust (JHT), the Panvel Municipal Corporation (PMC) has demolished several houses and other structures on disputed land linked to a historic Jewish cemetery in Panvel. The demolition, on Thursday, was carried out amid heavy police deployment.

The cemetery, near Mominpada and around 3 km from the 165-year-old Beth El Synagogue, serves Jewish families from Panvel, Navi Mumbai, Karjat and Khopoli. Three plots linked to the cemetery - Nos 209, 210 and 217 - have been at the centre of a protracted legal battle involving encroachments, competing ownership claims and disputed development rights. Thursday's demol...