Extending the interim ban on plying of e-rickshaws in the Capital till August 28, the Delhi High Court on Thursday asked the Union Government to issue an executive order on its own for regulating the battery-operated rickshaws in order to “fill up the vacuum”, if there is any, in the laws such as the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.
A Division Bench refused to pass any interim order till August 28, when the hearing on a public interest writ petition seeking regulation of e-rickshaws will resume, saying the Centre was well within its powers to issue orders for introducing the process for certification and grant of licences to e-rickshaw operators. The Government did not need the High Court’s directions for this, said the Bench.
The Bench, comprising Justice B.D. Ahmed and Justice Siddharth Mridul, said it will not pass an order on the Centre’s request for allowing e-rickshaws on the roads in Delhi on the basis of interim guidelines devised by the Union Road Transport and Highways Ministry.
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When Additional Solicitor-General Pinky Anand cited the Supreme Court’s judgment in the famous Vishakha case of 1997 in the context of formation of guidelines when a “suitable legislation” did not exist, the Court said the apex court verdict had given powers to the executive to fill up the gaps in law.
Lawyer Sugrive Dubey, appearing for petitioner Shanawaz Khan, produced several public notices of the Government as well as official correspondence among different departments, all of which had stated that the plying of e-rickshaws was illegal.