Rehri Patri Ekta Manch vs Municipal Corporation Of Delhi & Ors.

SIDDHARTH MRIDUL, J. (OPEN COURT)

The present writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, 1950, has been instituted by petitioner Association, praying as follows:-

Issue notice.

Ms. Tajinder Virdi, learned Standing Counsel, accepts notice on behalf of the MCD and Mr. Divyam Nandrajog, learned counsel accepts notice on behalf of the GNCTD.

Learned Standing Counsel appearing on behalf of the MCD, has invited our attention to the terms and conditions, permitting the petitioners to vend.

For the sake of completeness, the said terms and conditions attached to the Certificates of Vending, are reproduced herein below:-

In terms of the Certificates of Vending issued to the vendors of the petitioner Association, it is clearly stipulated that they cannot vend from any particular location, contrary to the express terms of Clause no. ‘11’, of the said Certificates of Vending. It is further observed that since the Town Vending Committee (TVC) is yet to fix a time limit, providing for a period, during which a vendor can vend from any particular spot, the stipulation of 30 minutes time, contained in the said clause, is binding on the said vendors, at this stage. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner Association states, that they do not pray for the relief for the said vendors, running their business from any particular vending site, within the zone where they have been permitted to vend by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, and further, the limited relief that is prayed for, is to permit the said vendors to vend strictly, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Certificates of Vending, issued by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.

It is an admitted position that the Town Vending Committee (TVC), has in terms of the directions issued by this Court, from time to time, as well as, in terms of the mandate of Section 3 (Survey of street vendors and protection from eviction on relocation) and Section 4 (Issue of certificate of vending) of the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, carried out a survey, in some of the areas under the MCD zones; pursuant to which, the following vendors have been issued certificates of vending, which are annexed as Annexure P-3, to the present writ petition.

In view of the foregoing, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner Association, categorically limits the relief in the present writ petition, to a direction to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, to permit the above-mentioned street vendors, to continue to vend within City-SP Zone, Ward-84-N, strictly and scrupulously in compliance with the terms and conditions of the said certificate of vending, particularly Clause no. 11, and in accordance with law.

In view of the above, the present writ petition is partly allowed; and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi is directed to permit the above-mentioned street vendors, to vend within City-SP Zone, Ward-84-N, subject to the terms and conditions of their certificates of vending, without any let or hindrance.

Needless to state that the above-mentioned vendors will be at liberty to articulate any difficulties faced by them, before the appropriate authorities, in accordance with law, in relation to the certificates of vending, insofar as it employs the expression „Others‟.

These directions have been passed only in respect of those vendors, whose Certificate of Vending (COV) have been appended with the present petition.

No further directions are prayed for.

With the above directions, the writ petition is disposed of accordingly. Pending application also stands disposed of.

A copy of this judgment be uploaded on the website of this Court forthwith.