Will dissolve municipal corporation if it fails to act against unauthorised street vendors, hawkers: Calcutta High Court

The Calcutta High Court on Monday warned that the Kolkata Municipal Corporation would be dissolved if it fails to crack down on unauthorised street vendors, hawkers and encroachers in the city [Faizan Md. Zafar v. State of West Bengal and ors].A Bench of Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam and Justice Ajay Kumar Mehta was dealing with a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by an advocate that drew the Court's attention to the motor vehicle spare parts market thriving at Mullick Bazaar and contributing to road blocks. .The Court noted that in another case, a lawyer complained of not being able to access his house due to street vendors. In that case, the authorities had responded by stating that they were unable to do anything because it was a busy market area..The Chief Justice proceeded to urge the municipal corporation to do something to address unauthorised hawking and vending, adding,"Your State machinery has thoroughly failed (in implementing the law)...If you throw up your hands, then we will dissolve your municipality...[if you] are unfit to administer the municipal laws...admit that you are not able to implement the rules, then we will do [it]...We will dissolve the corporation and we will say, 'the executives will run [it], the elected office bearers will not run the municipal corporation.'".The Court added that the situation would have improved by now if the State had constituted hawking committees to identify and relocate hawkers, depending on their category. "You did not constitute a hawking committee. 15 years back, if you had constituted, all of them (hawkers) would have been rehabilitated. Poor fellows, where will they go?...You have to face reality, some day some time," the Chief Justice remarked. .The Court noted that a report filed in the case reflected a sorry state of affairs. Photos submitted before the Court showed that no appreciable steps were taken to evict encroachers and regulate street hawkers. Referring to Mullick Bazaar, the Court added that the vendors complained of cannot be called "hawkers" and that they were "rank encroachers of government property."It also observed that such a situation was unfair to those shop keepers who legitimately occupy property after paying the rent, utility bills and tax obligations for such use."With all this, he (a shop owner) is trying to do business and the State turns a blind eye when a fellow (encroacher) puts a shop in front of his regular shops, blocks his access and does the same trade. And the State comes to say, 'I will protect him (encroacher), not the person who got a municipal licence, electricity connection, pays professional tax, pays property tax and water charges and rent to the landlord...what is all this, sir?" the Chief Justice queried, adding that the State should stop rewarding encroachers by failing to act against them. ."The Court fails to understand as to why the Kolkata Municipal Corporation as well as police authorities are unable to regulate or evict the hawkers," the Bench went on to observe.In this backdrop, the Court asked the municipal authorities to undertake an eviction drive if the encroachers do not voluntarily vacate the encroached premises. It ordered the authorities to make an announcement that the encroachers, unauthorised vendors and hawkers had 10 days to vacate the premises, failing which they would be evicted. If there is a hawking zone identified, these persons can be re-located to such hawking zones, the Court added. It also noted that in some cases, the encroachments were extensions from shops into pavements and roadways. The Court has ordered that 3 days' time be given for the removal of such encroachments, failing which the authorities are to remove the same. An action taken report is to be filed before the Court by July 17..If the authorities continue to not act against unauthorised vendors, they might as well take such vendors to the municipal corporation's premises, the Chief Justice said."Take all those vendors to your municipal corporation office...Please ask you mayor, your chairman, 'sir please remove all your cars, and in front let all the hawkers be allowed.'"In the alternative, the Court orally suggested that the corporation could build a motor bazar, regularise spare parts vendors as tenants and allow them to operate at such a place after giving them a licence..[Read Order]