Ban on e-rickshaws to continue, rules Delhi HC
11 Sept 2014 5:12 AM IST
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday said that the ban on plying of ‘illegal’ e-rickshaws in the national capital would continue till the law is amended to bring them under the ambit of the Motor Vehicles Act, adding that ‘what is prohibited by law is not permitted in action’. A division bench of Justice BD Ahmed and Justice Siddharth Mridul confirmed that the ban imposed on 31 July would stay, holding that the plying of e-rickshaws on the roads of Delhi ‘was and is unauthorized and illegal.’
‘High court cannot create a statute, much less permit what is prohibited by a valid statutory provision. We are not creators of law but the interpreters and guardians of law and the rule of law,’ they said. In July, the bench had banned plying of e-rickshaws on the city roads, saying they were running illegally and were hazardous to other traffic as well as citizens.
Turning down the central government’s request to let e-rickshaws ply till they are made lawful by parliament as thousands of people and their livelihood was being affected by the ban, the court Tuesday said: ‘Can this court permit something which has been expressly prohibited by parliament and, more so, when none of the provisions of the said act are under challenge? We think not.’
Denying relief to e-rickshaw operators, the bench said: ‘In sum, the plying of unregistered e-rickshaws is illegal as per the law as it exists today.
‘We cannot anticipate the legislative changes that may be brought about or the alterations in the statutory rules that may be introduced in the future. That is for parliament and the central government to consider and act upon. For the present, a mandamus can certainly be issued to ensure that what is prohibited by law is not permitted in action.’
‘High court cannot create a statute, much less permit what is prohibited by a valid statutory provision. We are not creators of law but the interpreters and guardians of law and the rule of law,’ they said. In July, the bench had banned plying of e-rickshaws on the city roads, saying they were running illegally and were hazardous to other traffic as well as citizens.
Turning down the central government’s request to let e-rickshaws ply till they are made lawful by parliament as thousands of people and their livelihood was being affected by the ban, the court Tuesday said: ‘Can this court permit something which has been expressly prohibited by parliament and, more so, when none of the provisions of the said act are under challenge? We think not.’
Denying relief to e-rickshaw operators, the bench said: ‘In sum, the plying of unregistered e-rickshaws is illegal as per the law as it exists today.
‘We cannot anticipate the legislative changes that may be brought about or the alterations in the statutory rules that may be introduced in the future. That is for parliament and the central government to consider and act upon. For the present, a mandamus can certainly be issued to ensure that what is prohibited by law is not permitted in action.’
Next Story
