Transfer Chairman & Enforcement Director of NDMC

 Anti –Poor, habitual violators of Human Rights

Selective use of Court orders to evict vendors of NDMC area

Instead of implementing the Street Vendors Act, the Chairperson and the Director NDMC are under the false belief that they can chase away the vendors from NDMC by use of force . Thus they are using selective provisions of the Court Orders to evict the vendors while ignoring the provisions in the same order which calls for regulation and rehabilitation.

They are also requesting personnel from the Delhi Police citing those selective provisions. Thus for example they cite a High Court order dated 18.05.2016 in LPA No 136/2016 saying vendors cannot be in footpath which are less than 2 meters wide and begin evicting vendors which are on footpaths which are less than 2 meters wide but they do not take steps to identify, recognize and legalize vendors which are selling as per the other provisions in the same order of the High Court . To give one example, it has been more than a month that despite High Court orders the Street Vendors sitting near Palika Bazaar have not been allowed to earn their livelihood.

Shocked and  concerned by the   continuous use of selective parts of Court Judgments  to harass street vendors of NDMC area and violation of the Street Vending Act 2014 by the Enforcement Director on the orders of the ChairmanNMDC , the National Association of Street Vendors of India( NASVI) has demanded immediate removal of Chairman and the Enforcement Director of NDMC

Ever since NDMC has come under the SMART CITY project , the Chairperson and Enforcement Director of the  NDMC  have made life of street vendors of NDMC area a real hell . There has also been death due to heart attack of the street vendors after the threat of NDMC for eviction in Sarojini Nagar.

NASVI has written to the Home Minister and the Urban Development Minister and have also sought appointment to explain the situation.

NASVI is also approaching  the National Human Rights Commission and the Delhi Women Commission .It will begin a postcard campaign against both of them .NASVI has also written to the Police Commissioner not to provide police force to NDMC

It is very unfortunate that we are becoming so harsh to the poor who are self employed and who are not requesting any subsidy or charity but are doing their work as per the law of the land which are being upheld by the High Court too . But the authoritarian action reminds us of military regimes. Their harassment is becoming unbearable and goods are being confiscated without any receipt ,

We thus demand immediate sacking of  the  anti poor Chairperson and the Enforcement Directorof NMDC. They do not deserve to hold such powerful positions which demand rational and human action rather than archaic medieval mindset of chasing poor out of main localities.

Arbind Singh, National coordinator (National Association of Street Vendors of India)

  development, NASVI National Association of Street vendors India, national association of street vendors India, NMDC, smart city plan, street food