The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea challenging the Jammu and Kashmir Government’s order restricting civilian traffic for a day in a week on a stretch of the national highway from Udhampur to Baramulla for the movement of security forces.
Counsel for the State Government told the bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Deepak Gupta that the order restricting traffic on the national highway was taken due to the ongoing election and will remain in force till May 31.
The bench, after hearing the submissions, said, “We are not inclined to keep this petition pending.” The State Government had issued an order on April 3 in which it said that keeping in view the Pulwama terror attack, another car bomb attack on security forces’ convoy at Banihal and movement of forces during the Lok Sabha elections, no civilian traffic movement will be allowed on the NH stretch from 4 AM to 5 PM once a week.
The order had said there would be one “dedicated day every week” for movement of security forces’ convoy when there would be no civilian traffic on the national highway from Baramulla to Udhampur from 4 AM to 5 PM.
The regulation of the vehicular movement on the NH would remain in force till May 31, it had said.