Vinod Kumar Bansal vs Govt. Of Nct Of Delhi & Ors.
2015 Latest Caselaw 1264 Del

*      IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

%                                    Date of decision: 11th February, 2015.

+      W.P.(C) No.1977/2014, CM No.4126/2014 (for stay) & CM
       No.2397/2015 (for directions)

       VINOD KUMAR BANSAL                                 ..... Petitioner
                   Through:            Mr. Sitab Ali Chaudhary, Mr.
                                       Anupam Srivastava & Mr. G. Ali,
                                       Adv.

                                    Versus

    GOVT. OF NCT OF DELHI & ORS.               ..... Respondents
                  Through: Ms. Zubeda Begum, Standing
                           Counsel (GNCTD) for R-1,7 & 6.
                           Mr. Anil Grover, Standing Counsel
                           and Ms. Divya Jain, Adv. for R-2.
                           Mr. Ajay Arora, Mr. Kapil Dutta, Mr.
                           Yashwardhan S. Rathore with Mr.
                           Jagat Rana, Adv. for R-3.
                           Mr. Anshumaan Bahadur for Mr.
                           Gaurang Kanth, Adv. for SDMC.
                           SI Udai Singh (Traffic / Hq.)
                           Mr. Arjun Pant with Mr. Abhishek
                           Chauhan, Adv. for R-8.
CORAM:
HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RAJIV SAHAI ENDLAW

RAJIV SAHAI ENDLAW, J.

1. This petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, filed as a

Public Interest Litigation, though was filed claiming several reliefs but vide

order dated 26th March, 2014 was entertained and notice thereof issued only

qua reliefs (a), (b), (c), (d) & (g) and which are as under:-

"a) Appropriate writ, order / directions in the nature of mandamus or any other appropriate writ directing the Respondents to reserve and provide parking spaces to physically challenged persons, close to the entrances, in terms of MPD 2021;

b) Appropriate writ, order / directions in the nature of mandamus or any other appropriate writ, directing the Respondents to install auditory signals at red lights in the public roads for the benefit of persons with visually handicap as mandated on the State under the persons with physical disability under the Persons with Disability (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995;

c) Appropriate writ, order / directions in the nature of mandamus or any other appropriate writ, directing the Respondents to cause curb cuts and slopes to be made in pavements for the easy access of wheel chair users and further direct engraving on the surface of the zebra crossing for the blind or for persons with low vision and further direct to make ramps in public buildings as mandated on the State under the persons with physically disability under the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995;

d) Appropriate writ, order / directions in the nature of mandamus or any other appropriate writ directing the Respondents to remove forthwith the illegal parking of cars, vehicles & other encroachments including hoarding and boarding etc. on footpaths & pavements in Delhi and further direct to remove the cars / vehicles from the streets and roads in the major markets in Delhi; and,

g) Appropriate writ, order / directions in the nature of mandamus or any other appropriate writ directing the

Respondents to implement the relevant provisions of MPD 2021, in its letter and spirit in Delhi, regarding parking, roads & transportation systems in Delhi."

2. The respondent no.6 Delhi Traffic Police has filed a reply stating that

it has provided 857 traffic signals and 401 traffic blinkers in Delhi for

ensuring smooth flow of traffic and safety of pedestrians and other road

users; a total of 57 traffic signals have been provided with auditory devices

for the safety of visually handicapped persons and in addition 35 locations

have been identified for providing auditory signals. It is further stated that at

locations on roads where there is a continuous flow of traffic, 22 pelican

traffic signals and 36 pedestrian traffic signals are functional which have the

facility to provide adequate time in the signal cycle to pedestrians in safely

crossing the roads. It is yet further stated that 96 signals with pedestrian

aspects have been installed and it is envisaged to provide pedestrian aspects

on nearly all the signals. With respect to removal of illegal parking it is

stated that regular action is taken and the offenders prosecuted and necessary

signage boards of "No Parking and "Tow-away Zone" have been installed at

appropriate places. Particulars of the prosecutions launched in the year 2013

and up to 30th April, 2014 have also been furnished. Similarly, with respect

to the grievance urged of encroachment on the road by second hand car

dealers, it is stated that action against them is also being taken. With respect

to other encroachments on pavements also it is stated that a special drive in

coordination with the civic agencies has been launched, 567 encroachments

removed, action against 180 vendors taken, 159 vehicles have been towed

away and 1074 vehicles have been challaned and 145 notices for obstructive

parking issued. It is further assured that maximum number of traffic

personnel are deployed at all strategic intersections and locations.

3. The respondent no.8 DDA in its counter affidavit stated that it is not

concerned with the subject and it is the Unified Traffic and Transportation

Infrastructure (Planning and Engineering) Centre (UTTIPEC) a body

constituted vide Notification dated 31st July, 2008 in exercise of powers

under Section 57 of the Delhi Development Act, 1957 which is responsible

for developing a comprehensive integrated programme for traffic and

transportation projects.

4. The respondent no.4 South Delhi Municipal Corporation in its counter

affidavit has stated that necessary directions have already been issued to

provide reserved parking space to physically challenged persons close to the

entrances and earmark the space with the sign board as per guidelines of

MPD-2021.

5. The respondent no.2 New Delhi Municipal Committee in its counter

affidavit has stated, (i) that the work of installation of auditory signals at red

lights within its jurisdictional area is being undertaken in a phased manner;

(ii) that for the convenience of persons under disability almost all pavements

/ footpaths have curb cuts in them to allow access to wheelchairs and

comfort of people on crutches and whenever any deficiencies are pointed out

immediate action thereon is taken; (iii) that all zebra crossings have been

made with engraving; (iv) all public buildings under its control have been

installed with ramps along with side-rails for easy access of the persons with

disability; and, (v) that the menace of illegal parking and encroachment is

also dealt with on day to day basis.

6. Though the respondent no.1 Government of National Capital

Territory of Delhi, respondent no.3 North Delhi Municipal Corporation,

respondent no.5 East Delhi Municipal Corporation, respondent no.7

Commissioner of Police, Delhi have not filed any replies but after hearing

the appearing counsels we are of the view that there is no need for keeping

this petition pending any longer.

7. The petition, as would be obvious has been filed for seeking

enforcement / implementation of the provisions of various laws, rules &

regulations meant for ensuring freedom of movement to persons with

disability. With respect to the reliefs on which the petition has been

entertained, it is pointed out that, (i) though footpaths and pavements are

meant only for pedestrians but remain blocked and are misused by

shopkeepers / hawkers and also by parking of cars, scooters, motorcycles

thereon thereby depriving the use thereof to pedestrians, especially persons

with disabilities who are thus unable to use the same for walking /

movement of wheelchairs, safe from the vehicles on road; (ii) similarly

illegal hoardings, banners, posters, arches etc. put up particularly by

shopkeepers on public places on roads, besides being an eyesore and

nuisance also pose hazard in the movement of persons with disability; (iii)

that curb cuts, ramps, for crossing roads and accessing pavements on

wheelchair are missing at number of places and wherever exist, remain

blocked by parked vehicles; and, (iv) no parking for persons with disability

is provided at the entrance of buildings, hospitals, schools, universities etc.

and wherever provided, remains encroached by vehicles of others and no

action thereagainst is taken.

8. The counsel for neither of the agencies controvert the issue

highlighting which the petition has been filed. However with respect to

provision of auditory signals at traffic lights on public roads, the counsel for

Delhi Traffic Police states that six months time is required for making all the

requisite traffic signals in Delhi auditory.

9. Our own experience of the city of Delhi shows that at several places

though slopes / ramps have been provided to enable access to wheelchairs or

persons unable to use the staircase but merely for namesake, as the gradient

thereof is very steep. The same amounts to paying only a lip service to the

rules & regulations mandating provision thereof. We take this opportunity to

draw the attention of all the concerned agencies thereto and to standardise

the gradient of the ramp to ensure efficacy thereof. Similarly, at other places

we find the ramps to be inaccessible owing to the storm water drain on the

sides of the roads and which acts as a barrier between the road and the ramp

leading to the pavement; rather what is found is that the ramps are used by

vehicles, especially two wheelers for access to the pavements to drive

thereon to avoid the congested roads.

10. We have also experienced that existence of multiple agencies

undertaking different tasks with respect to roads also acts as an impediment.

It appears that the work of construction / maintenance of roads, storm water

drains, pavements, public parking spaces, installation of signages and other

street furniture on roads / pavements is spread over several agencies /

departments viz. PWD, the four Municipal Corporations, Horticulture

Department, Flood Control Department, UTTIPEC etc. Besides, other

agencies like electricity, telephone, cable TV and gas companies /

departments, from time to time carry out works on roads / pavements. Often

it is found that such agencies dig up a road for laying cables / pipes or for

installation of street furniture etc. immediately after the road / pavement has

been re-laid. There appears to be no coordination. The problem is

compounded with certain other works being now also undertaken under the

Local Area Development Fund Scheme by the concerned legislator. There

appears to be no nodal agency. The use of such roads / pavements is

regulated by yet another agency i.e. the Traffic Police. All this comes in the

way of optimum and intended use of our roads / pavements, with the same

being congested, dusty, blocked, uneven and full of potholes, impeding

movement thereon.

11. The aforesaid state of affairs belies the expectation of a citizen from

the State, of providing the necessary infrastructure for exercise of the right

of movement from one place to another and which is an essential State

function.

12. The existence of plethora of authorities / bodies to deal with the

various facets / functions over a given area / zone and the further division of

responsibility even within each of such authority / body amongst several

officials, results in not one person being responsible or accountable for the

proper upkeep and maintenance of any area / zone and the resultant non-

governance or deficiency in governance. Accountability is one of the

ingredients of good governance. Though the Supreme Court also in In Re:

Special Reference No.1 of 2012 (2012) 10 SCC 1 has held that every holder

of public office by virtue of which he acts on behalf of the State, is

ultimately accountable to the people in whom sovereignty vests but what is

found is that for the reason of the said accountability / responsibility vesting

not in a single person but collectively in several, in the event of non-

performance, none is accountable, with the buck being passed from one to

another.

13. We have wondered, why one official cannot be responsible for all

facets with respect to a defined stretch of road or defined area / zone, to be

accountable for all deficiencies, of whatsoever nature thereon. It is sad that

despite expending huge funds and the best intention of the officials /

employees, the city is not able to achieve the world class status to which it

aspires.

14. The main reason, according to us, of failure of this facet of

governance is, continuance even today of tools / schemes / systems / policies

of governance and administration which were devised over half if not over a

century ago. The tools / schemes / systems / policies of governance /

administration which may have been effective then, have with the vast

expansion of the city and its population and the increased demands, today

failed. No attempt to bring in new / modern tools / schemes / systems /

policies to combat the present day issues, appears to have been made.

Though we regularly hear and read of fortunes of large businesses changing

with introduction of new management techniques, to our knowledge no such

attempt or thought even has been made / given vis-a-vis management of the

city. It is not for nothing that business houses, at huge costs, hire

management consultants to, after studying their existing management

systems, suggest changes for optimising efficiency and profits. We do not

see any reason as to why the same cannot be done vis-a-vis a city. The

governance of a city is not completely divorced from the management of a

large corporation. What works for corporations, in our view should work

for the city also.

15. We however hasten to add that we are not and cannot even claim to be experts on this subject. We, in fact cannot even be sure whether such an exercise has already been undertaken or not. We however use the platform of this judgment to draw the attention of the governmental agency to the issue and the urgent need for change. The Supreme Court in Md. Abdul Kadir Vs. Director General of Police (2009) 6 SCC 611 held that where an issue involving public interest has not engaged the attention of those concerned with policy or where the failure to take prompt decision on a pending issue is likely to be detrimental to public interests, Courts will be failing in their duty if do not draw attention of the concerned authorities to the issue involved, though not making a policy, but acting as catalyst for change.

16. However, considering the status of the city of Delhi, we feel that undertaking of such an exercise without involvement of the Union of India (which is not a party to this petition) may not serve any purpose. The new tools / schemes / systems / policies for administration / governance of the city will have to be devised in consultation with all the governmental agencies having a role to play in Delhi and within the ambit of the Constitutional status of the city. We are sure that a competent think tank / consultant assigned the said task would be able to devise a structure / scheme / system for better administration / governance of the city.

17. We accordingly, in the first instance direct the Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India and the Chief Secretary, Govt. of NCT of Delhi to present their views in this respect before us by filing affidavits, within a period of four weeks from today including as to the consultant / think tank / expert who / which can be entrusted with the said task.

18. As far as the grievance in this petition, of encroachment of the

payments by unauthorizedly parked vehicles, hawkers, vendors, kiosks,

unauthorized banners, billboards is concerned, while we do appreciate that there can be no 24 hour policing but at the same time, the citizens are not

provided with an efficacious remedy to draw the attention of the agency

concerned to the menace and whenever the citizens do muster up the

courage to complain, the response / action thereon is so dissatisfactory as to dissuade a second complaint. We are of the view that without involving the

citizens in the process, the said menace cannot be controlled. To encourage

the citizens to get involved we are of the opinion that if a telephone

number/e-mail address or other user ID for cross-platform mobile messaging applications for receiving images/videos of violations and encroachments of

facilities for the disabled, for each smaller area / zone of the city is

advertised and displayed at prominent places for lodging complaint against

the said menace, the same, in these days of nearly everyone carrying cell

phone, will go a long way in controlling the menace. However the

endeavour of the citizens to complain should not be allowed to go waste.

Only if a citizen sees action being taken on his / her complaint, will he / she

be encouraged to complain in future also. We are of the view that making

one person responsible for each smaller zone would help in this also in as much as upon action on the complaint being not taken, the citizen will know

who is guilty therefor.

19. We accordingly dispose of this petition with the following directions:-

(a) all the concerned agencies to within six months hereof, in each

of the parking spaces presently available, reserve parking

space/s most suitable for persons with disability and in

sufficient number after assessing the need and to on the board

reserving the said parking space itself also give the name and

phone number of the person with whom the complaint with

respect to misuse of the said parking space is to be lodged;

(b) feasibility of making a provision for action against the

contractor / attendant of manned parking lots / places viz. of

cancellation of contract etc. for allowing such reserved parking

spaces to be used for parking by others be considered;

(c) feasibility of providing for identification of vehicles of persons

with disability be also explored so that it can be identified

whether the vehicle parked in the said reserved parking space is

of a person with disability or of some other person;

(d) the process of installation of auditory signals at all traffic lights

be completed within six months;

(e) all the concerned agencies to within the said time of six months

ensure that all pavements are accessible to persons with

disabilities, taking into consideration the observations made

hereinabove;

(f) dedicated phone lines/ e-mail address or other user ID for cross-

platform mobile messaging applications for receiving

complaints/images/videos of blocking the access to the

pavements by encroaching thereon be provided and the

telephone number for each district be widely advertised for

enabling the citizens to make complaints with respect thereto

and the name of the person responsible for dealing with the said

complaint and the time within which the complaint is to be

dealt with shall also be provided;

(g) each of the concerned agencies to within four weeks hereof file

affidavits in the Court naming the person responsible for

complying with the directions issued by us and such person

shall be responsible for non-compliance of the directions.

20. The petition, to the extent of the reliefs claimed therein, is disposed

of; no order as to costs. However vis-a-vis the direction given by us in para

17 above, list on 19th May, 2015.

RAJIV SAHAI ENDLAW, J.

CHIEF JUSTICE FEBRUARY 11, 2015 „pp‟ (corrected & released on 25th March, 2015)