Delhi govt stand sought on plea claiming ration card not issued despite applying for it 8 yrs ago

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought the stand of the Delhi government on the petition of a woman, who said she had not been issued a ration card despite having applied for it eight years ago and despite having made several representations to the authorities regarding it.

Justice Rekha Palli noted that it would be better to post the matter for October 25 and let the Delhi government get instructions before filing responses in the matter.

The woman, who said she fell below the poverty line, claimed that she had not been issued a ration card despite having applied for it eight years ago on September 25, 2013. The woman's lawyer also noted that another application in this regard was submitted in 2018 and that because she fell below the poverty line, she had no source of income.

The Delhi government, represented by Advocate Gautam Narayan, said that the formula by which food grains are allotted to States and UTs comes from the Centre and that the petitioner had not been deprived of or denied food grains or ration for this long.

The Delhi government added that the petitioner had been receiving subsidised food grains in the meantime - free of cost. At this point, the court said, "You can't say you'll not give. It is under process but for how many years?"

The Delhi government went on to submit to the court that since the National Food Security Act came into force in 2013, new cards are being issued based on Aadhaar card details, according to legal news website LiveLaw.

So, Advocate Narayan went on to explain that the petitioner had submitted her application for an Aadhaar, instead of the Aadhaar itself — which had caused the problem. The court said, "You are right that it will be done on a first come and first serve basis but three years are enough." "It's not a political speech here. I'm only interested in knowing when will you issue the ration card. You're not going to sit on it. Three years are gone," the Court added.

"Mr. Gautam Narayan appearing for Respondents 2-4 on advance notice prays time for instructions. Keeping in view the nature of relief sought, this Court deems it appropriate to first direct the Respondent no. 2 to obtain instructions as to why the application is pending for the last 8 years," the court ordered.