New Delhi: A plea was filed in the Supreme Court on Saturday seeking initiation of contempt proceedings against authorities over alleged non-compliance with the apex court’s direction against a complete prohibition on the movement of metro and Indian Railways trains in Delhi on October 10 amid the CJP protest.
The petition, filed by Shailendra Mani Tripathi, has named Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan and others as respondents.
It alleged that authorities continued to restrict access to metro stations in the national capital despite the Supreme Court’s October 9 direction, claiming that the curbs had disrupted public life and caused hardship to commuters.
The plea referred to the apex court’s October 9 order, passed while hearing a separate petition challenging the closure of 57 metro stations and the cancellation of trains to Delhi ahead of the protest.
The demonstration was called by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which is demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
While hearing the matter on Friday, a bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana directed the Centre to ensure that there was no “complete prohibition” on the movement of metro trains and trains coming to Delhi on October 10, saying authorities could not bring everything to a halt.
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The top court observed that while law enforcement agencies were entitled to take measures to restrict unruly movement, citizens should not be subjected to undue harassment.
“It appears that the notifications are overreaching, as they impose a complete ban upon essential public transportation. Upon our indication that a distinction exists between total ‘prohibition’ and the ‘regulation’ of metro and other train movements, Solicitor General of India has fairly agreed to impress upon the authorities to reassess such prohibitions,” the bench said in its order.
“Regarding that assurance, we clarify that although there shall be no outright prohibition on the movement of metro trains, a prudent decision may be made to permit the operation of metro trains and other rail services in a suitable and regulated manner,” it added.
The bench also said the decision should be widely publicised to prevent further inconvenience to commuters.
It directed that a traffic advisory be published in newspapers and on online platforms to facilitate the smooth movement of vehicles and ensure that people travelling within the city did not face undue hardship.
Meanwhile, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation said in an advisory that entry and exit gates at 45 stations would remain closed from 9 pm on Friday until 6 pm on Saturday for security reasons. Indian Railways also suspended more than 200 train services to and from Delhi.
