In a significant relief to street vendors operating in Lucknow, the Allahabad High Court on Wednesday directed the Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) not to remove any existing vendors until a proper city-wide survey is completed and vending certificates are issued under the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014. The only exception permitted by the court is where a vendor’s presence obstructs traffic movement.
The Lucknow bench, comprising Justice Rajan Roy and Justice A.K. Kumar Chaudhary, issued the interim direction while hearing a petition filed by Amar Kumar Sonkar and several other street vendors from the Aminabad area. The court also instructed the LMC to formulate a vending plan and fixed the next hearing in the matter after three months.
The bench emphasised that until the requisite processes under the Act are completed—including a lawful survey, state government approval of the vending scheme, and issuance of vending certificates—eligible street vendors are entitled to statutory protection under Section 3(3) of the 2014 Act. This provision mandates that no street vendor shall be evicted or relocated until the survey and certification process is duly carried out.
The court observed:
“Until the survey is completed in accordance with law, the vending scheme is approved by the state government and vending certificates are issued, eligible street vendors would continue to enjoy statutory protection under Section 3(3) of the Act.”
During the hearing, the LMC submitted that it had prepared a vending plan, but it was yet to be approved by the state government. The court clarified that without such approval, the plan has no legal standing.
Highlighting systemic delays, the bench noted that planning, survey, and vending certificate issuance had remained pending for over 11 years since the Act came into force. It held that the LMC must treat all existing street vendors, including the petitioners, strictly in accordance with the Act’s provisions.
The petitioners argued that despite the completion of a survey, vending certificates had not been distributed, and vendors were being removed from their current sites—contrary to the legislative safeguards guaranteed under the 2014 Act.
The court’s order not only halts any hasty eviction drives but also reinforces the statutory process designed to protect street vendors’ livelihoods. It directed the LMC to act lawfully and expedite the completion of the survey and vending certificate distribution.
The matter is scheduled for further hearing after three months, by which time the court expects tangible progress in implementing the city vending plan in compliance with the law.
