HC directs police, North MCD to remove unauthorised hawkers at Chandni Chowk

New Delhi: Delhi sh The Delhi High Court Thursday directed the Delhi Police and North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NrDMC) to conduct drives for removing all unauthorised hawkers and vendors from no-hawking zones of Chandni Chowk and Subhash Marg here.

A bench of Justices Vipin Sanghi and Jasmeet Singh's order came after perusing several photographs filed by Chowk Sarv Vyapar Mandal showing illegal and unauthorised hawking activities being carried out in Chandni Chowk and Subhash Marg.

The court asked the SHO of Kotwali Police Station and the Deputy Commissioner of NrDMC to conduct the drives and file an action taken report within a week.

The court was hearing a plea by Chandni Chowk Sarv Vyapar Mandal, represented through senior advocate Sanjeev Ralli and lawyer Mohit Mudgal, seeking direction to the authorities to remove illegal hawkers and vendors from the no-hawking and no-squatting area in Chandni Chowk, which has recently undergone redevelopment.

The high court had earlier said that anybody who was encroaching upon public space must be removed and it cannot be permitted that the whole pavements in markets are covered with encroachment leaving no space for people to walk.

It had also asked the municipal corporation to prepare a street vending plan.

They can't be permitted that the whole pavement is covered with encroachers and making it impossible for people to walk. Please please for God's sake do the planning and do not make communications at the last moment, the high court had earlier said, adding that NrDMC does not seem in any urgency to formulate a plan so that hawking activity could be organised.

It had also directed the Delhi Police to positively take steps on the installation of CCTV cameras at Chandni Chowk area before February 28, failing which the Commissioner of Delhi Police shall remain present before it.

It had said it was trying to fill up a void which is there in the law, Street Vendors Act, and added that it does not want all these poor people to be driven away but things have to be done properly with a plan.