SC contempt plea targets Delhi transit shutdown despite no-ban order

A fresh plea in the Supreme Court seeks contempt action over alleged defiance of its order on Delhi transit curbs. The petition says the shutdown breached citizens' rights and ignored directions for regulated movement.

In Short

• Petition names Home Secretary, police chief and DMRC chairperson as respondents
• Lawyer said closures violated citizens' rights and ignored the court's assurance
• Petitioner found GTB Nagar and Vishwavidyalaya station entry gates completely shut

A plea was filed in the Supreme Court on Saturday seeking contempt proceedings against authorities over the alleged violation of the court's direction that there should be no complete prohibition on the movement of metro services and Indian Railways trains to Delhi on October 10 in view of the CJP protest. The petition named Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan, Delhi Police Commissioner Anurag Kumar and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation chairperson D Thara as respondents.

The plea referred to the top court's October 9 order, passed on a separate petition against the closure of 57 metro stations and cancellation of trains to Delhi. While hearing that matter, a bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant had said the authorities could regulate movement but could not bring everything to a halt. The protest call was given by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and some student organisations against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the functioning of the Election Commission.

The contempt plea was filed by advocate Shailendra Mani Tripathi through advocate Chand Qureshi. It said, "This brutal assault on the fundamental rights of the citizens and sheer disregard to the orders of this court amounts to deliberate, intentional attempt on the part of Delhi Metro, Delhi Police and the Union government which must be dealt with an iron hand." The petition further said that despite the court's direction and the assurance recorded before it, the authorities had "consciously maintained a blanket shutdown across transit corridors, persisted with unwarranted train cancellations, and failed to issue or publicize transparent traffic and transit advisories".

According to the plea, the petitioner was directly affected by the "arbitrary closure" of metro stations and station gates in Delhi. It said he visited GTB Nagar metro station and Vishwavidyalaya metro station at about 9.30 pm on Friday and found that entry gates were completely closed while exit gates were being manually regulated. The plea said the court's immediate intervention was needed because of the "blatant violations" of its October 9 order, and alleged that the authorities were "deliberately, intentionally and knowingly creating lawless condition in the national capital".

The petition sought contempt proceedings against the respondents for their alleged deliberate, wilful and contumacious disobedience of the October 9 order. It also sought an urgent ad-interim direction to immediately revoke blanket prohibitory orders on metro and railway operations and enforce a strictly regulated operational schedule with immediate public notice. The plea urged the apex court to issue notice to the respondents and direct them to appear in person to show cause why they should not be punished for contempt of court.

In its October 9 order, the Supreme Court had said, "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 had added, "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 also said the decision should be widely publicised and that a traffic advisory should be published in newspapers and online platforms to avoid inconvenience. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta had told the court that he would consult the government and that restrictions could be regulated and periodically reviewed. Delhi Metro later said 45 stations would remain closed from 9 pm on Friday till 6 pm on Saturday for security reasons, even as the fresh plea alleged non-compliance with the court's directions.

- Ends