Gujarat High Court: Biren A. Vaishnav, J., while dealing with the plea filed by street vendors who had been prohibited from selling non-vegetarian food on the streets of Ahmedabad rapped the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation and asked them as to how people could be stopped from “eating what they want” just because “somebody in power thinks this is what they want you to do”.
“You don’t like non-veg food, it is your lookout. How can you decide what people should eat outside? How can you stop people from eating what they want?”
The Court was dealing with the plea filed by 20 street vendors challenging the non-implementation of Street Vendors [Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending] Act, 2014.
Petitioners have also challenged the deplorable, illegal, and unjust action of the Respondents [AMC, State of Gujarat] in seizing the laaris/carts and other ancillary equipment/apparatus of the Petitioners coupled with the raw materials used to prepare food/snacks for consumption without following due process.
AMC had claimed that the drive was undertaken in view of the fact that selling non-vegetarian food on the streets creates a health hazard as it was unhygienic and also harmful for the environment.
The plea also averred that as long as a person doesn’t impinge/violate the right of another or violates the law of the land, he/she must be free to produce/sell anything that he/she wants as such right has been afforded by Article 21 of the Constitution of India. The plea prayed that AMC be directed o not oust any hawker/vendor/seller from the streets and not to impound any cart/laari/equipment/apparatus of the street vendors without complying with the provisions of the Street Vendors Act, 2014 and rules framed thereunder.
[Source: The Indian Express]
Suchita Shukla, Editorial Assistant has reported this story.
