The Supreme Court directed civic authorities to resume the sealing drive against unauthorised shops in residential areas.
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday directed the capital’s civic authorities to immediately resume the sealing drive against unauthorised shops in residential areas and severely castigated them for their inability to handle the situation.
A bench of Chief Justice YK Sabharwal and Justice CK Thakker declined to grant any relief to those traders who had given an undertaking that they would stop their commercial activities in residential premises. The court directed authorities to ensure compliance of earlier directions to seal premises if the traders did not shut shop on their own.
The court came down heavily on the central government, Delhi government and Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) for seeking modifications of the earlier orders citing law and order problems and the inability of the police to handle the situation.
The bench reminded the central and Delhi governments that they had an obligation under the Constitution to implement the orders of the Supreme Court and they could not express helplessness on grounds of law and order for not complying with the directions. The court criticised the authorities for giving false hopes to the traders that they (the authorities) would get favourable orders.
The judges also made it clear to the traders that they could not hold the people and the law-abiding citizens to ransom by holding a dagger against the government to seek relief. While rejecting all the applications, the court made it clear that the sealing operations should proceed as per the directions issued Sep 29 and Oct 18.
The central and Delhi governments should provide adequate police forces to MCD to carry out sealing operations as per the guidance of the Supreme Court-monitoring committee.
Monday’s ruling comes a week after three days of traders’ strike triggered violence in the Capital.
Right from the word go and all through over an hour long proceedings an anguished Bench headed by Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal virtually took the civic bodies and police force as well to task for raising the bogey of `law and problem’ in pulling gown these shops. The same excuse was raised when the court had asked the government to control the riots in Gujarat, Mumbai and Delhi in 1984.
Outside the courtroom, hundreds of placards carrying traders waited with bated breath for the outcome of the proceedings. When TV channels broke the news, they shouted anti-government slogans.
“I am worried about what may happen to the orders of high courts and lower courts if Supreme Court’s orders are not obeyed,” CJI said. “Will the matters be decided on the streets than in the courts,” he queried, adding that it was the duty of the government and not the court to maintain law and order.
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