Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma, Justice Meenakshi I. Mehta, Punjab & Haryana High Court
A Tribal Lady Can Be President Of India; Persons Who Worked As Clerks Rose Upto Level Of Chief Justices: Punjab & Haryana High Court
|The Punjab and Haryana High Court said that there is an elite class still following the Britishers, who looks down upon their own countrymen doing small business.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court remarked that a tribal lady of a remote village can now be the President of India, and a worker from the grass root level may reach up to the highest echelons of the administration.
The Court remarked thus in a Writ Petition preferred by the Presidents of Manimajra Vyapar Mandal and residential welfare association, Manimajra.
A Division Bench comprising Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Justice Meenakshi I. Mehta observed, “The Judiciary has to rise itself above from such impressions which such elite class carries. Gone are the days when we had British Judges sitting in Courts, looking at justice to be delivered for people who rule. We are a country, who are now having homogenous class of Indians. A Tribal lady of a remote village can now be the President of India, and a worker from the grass-root level may reach up to the highest echelons of the administration. There are scores of examples of such employees who are presently working on various posts and are ably helping in the administration as well as Judiciary in the country. Even in the Judiciary, we have had examples of persons who worked as Munshis/Clerks with lawyers and rose upto the level of Chief Justices.”
The Bench said that there is an elite class still following the Britishers, who looks down upon their own countrymen doing small business and treat them as if they are mafias or encroachers who cause chaos in commercial hubs.
Advocate Hardip Singh appeared on behalf of the Petitioners while Advocate Sanjiv Ghai appeared on behalf of the Respondents.
Brief Facts
The concerned mandal and association, by their resolution, resolved to file the Writ Petition before the High Court on behalf of their members. It was alleged that the vendors, hawkers, and squatters are members of mafia and are encroachers. It was claimed that they encroached on the commercial hubs, roads, parks, and other public places and adversely affect the business of the Petitioners and obstruct the open and free use of the roads, paths and public places. It was further alleged that the hawkers have set up their small shops selling fruits or stalls of water balls (golgappa/pani poori) and cane juice to the people who are coming to the market.
Court’s Observations
The High Court in the above context of the case, noted, “… there is an attempt through this writ petition to evict the vendors who are admittedly carrying out vending since long in the area where the members of the union falls. We are told that Manimajra, which has been now included as part of urbanized area of U.T. Chandigarh and was earlier a village of Chandigarh, has local market with the street vendors selling their food items, etc. since long.”
The Court further emphasised that the street vendors and their families, who are depositing fee with the Municipal Corporation for the certificate being given to them for vending, also need to be provided some social protection.
“The amount so recovered by the Municipal Corporation should, therefore, be used for their benefits alone and should be kept in a separate budget head, and as a suitable insurance for them, including medical facilities, should be provided by the Municipal Corporation, U.T. Chandigarh, and Rules in this regard should be framed”, it added.
The Court also observed that the Street Vending Act and the benefits which it meant to give to the genuine street vendors is being misused by a certain set of persons, and even the shopkeepers themselves setup hawkers’ stall in front of their shops selling their own items.
“At the same time, a certain group of people use wrongful means to get their name entered in the survey registers and illegally get sites registered for hawkers purposely. Such misuse of law deserves to be dealt with by an iron hand and a will to execute the provisions of law with integrity and dutifully”, it remarked.
The Court, therefore, suggested that the Municipal Corporation, U.T. Chandigarh, should accordingly set up a particular cell of Inspectors/Officers to regulate that there is no misuse of the Vendors’ Act so that genuine people may not be harmed.
“The petition, prima facie, appears to be a motivated petition with a view to use the legal forum for evicting and destabilizing the local business of the street vendors. We cannot allow such abuse of process of law”, it concluded.
Accordingly, the High Court dismissed the Writ Petition and imposed a cost of Rs. 50,000/- each on both the Unions, to be deposited with the Municipal Corporation, U.T. Chandigarh, for the welfare of the street vendors and their families.
Cause Title- Malkit Singh and another v. State of U.T. Chandigarh and others (Neutral Citation: 2025:PHHC:073015-DB)