No heavy vehicles in Fancy Bazar, Panbazar & Lachit Ghat: Gauhati High Court

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Gauhati High Court (GHC) has directed Deputy Inspector General of Police (MPC) Nitul Gogoi to ensure that heavy vehicles are neither allowed in Fancy Bazar and Panbazar, nor parked at Lachit Ghat from Tuesday.

The bench comprising Chief Justice Ajai Lamba and Justice Soumitra Saikia issued the order while responding to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) (72/2016) filed by Rita Das Mozumdar, a resident of Maligaon Chariali.

The court said it has been informed that heavy motor vehicles are not allowed to enter the city or park within the city between 7:00 am to 9:00 pm. However, the court observed that trucks laden with goods or which are to be loaded are parked at Lachit Ghat.

The court took judicial notice of the fact that ordinarily the houses of economically poor people do not have proper place for recreation, strolling or lawns. Such persons generally use areas such as Lachit Ghat for strolls in the evening and during the day time. Thus, commercial activities have been allowed to take precedence despite the fact that regulations bar entry of these vehicles in the township during the day time.

Further, the court stated that affidavits in deference to the order on May 29, 2020 have not been filed. It asked all the affidavits to be filed in the Registry on or before the next date of listing on June 12.

"Considering the complexities of the matter and the fact that multiple authorities are now involved and the scope of the PIL has widened because all aspects of development of the city are required to be addressed, we deem it appropriate to request D Mazumder, learned Senior Advocate, assisted by SS Talukdar as Amicus Curiae to assist the court," the court added.

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