The Kerala High Court on Wednesday directed the Kochi Corporation Secretary to ask street vendors to display their vending certificates at the place of vending and produce it before the authorities whenever demanded.
The court also directed the Corporation Secretary, who was present before the court, to immediately inform all eligible street vendors to collect the certificates. The Secretary was also directed to inform vendors that on failure to produce the certificates as and when demanded by the authorities concerned, including the Monitoring Committee, they would be evicted from their place of vending. The court also directed the Secretary to issue a public notice in this regard.
The court passed the order when a batch of petitions seeking to restrain the authorities from interfering with street vending activity came up for hearing.
The amicus curiae appointed in the case submitted that that it had come to the notice of the Monitoring Committee that the vendors found eligible to receive the certificates of vending were not exhibiting the certificates in their place of vending and many had not collected the certificates from the office of the Corporation.
The amicus curiae in a report highlighted the discrepancy in the numbers shown by the Corporation with regard to vendors who were issued the certificates.
The court, therefore, directed the standing counsel for the Corporation to compare the figures in the report prepared by the Secretary with those shown in the report of the amicus curiae, discuss the matter with the amicus curiae and come up with a finally agreed figure with regard to the number of persons who were issued the certificates of vending.
