Delhi High Court on Friday stayed the proceeding of eviction of street vendors without following the due process on a petition filed by Delhi Congress president and former Union Minister Ajay Maken. The Congress leader has sought protection in cases of atrocities against street vendors in the national Capital. On Maken’s plea, a division Bench headed by Chief Justice G Rohini, directed the Delhi Police, MCD, NDMC and the Delhi Government that no street vendor shall be evicted in the national Capital, without following due process of law. The Bench has fixed September 28, next date of hearing.
Maken said that Section 3(3) of the Street Vendors Act, 2014 mandates that no street vendor can be evicted till a survey is completed as per the process provided in the Act. “In Delhi, no survey of vendors has been conducted yet, as the Kejriwal Government has failed to frame a scheme, as per the Act. Hence, as per the order passed today, no vendor/ hawker can be evicted, till the completion of survey and identification of vending/ no-vending zones in Delhi,” he said.
“Such unlawful and arbitrary eviction of vendors by the Delhi Police and municipal authorities is carried out in order to harass the poor hawkers and extract money from them,” said Maken in his petition.
Before the court, the Congress chief also highlighted the various incidents where vendors were not just arbitrarily removed but also harassed and beaten by police and MCD officials. Maken also said that in the said process, the highhanded authorities also illegally destroy and take away the articles of vending of the vulnerable vendors.