The Delhi High Court comprising of Justice Prathiba M. Singh and Justice Vikas Mahajan has directed the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to identify a suitable site in the Vasant Kunj area where a 70% locomotor-disabled street vendor can operate his tea stall, pending a decision on his Certificate of Vending (CoV) by the Town Vending Committee-II (TVC-II).
The petitioner had approached the Court seeking a direction to the authorities to issue him a Certificate of Vending and permit him to vend at his designated spot opposite C-8, Gate No. 15, near an Indian Oil petrol pump and Dalit Ekta Camp, Vasant Kunj.
The Court noted that the petitioner had suffered 70% locomotor disability following an accident in 2023 and had been vending in the Vasant Kunj area.
Before the Court, the MCD stated that the petitioner’s survey as a street vendor had been conducted on December 2, 2021 and duly approved. However, the Certificate of Vending could not be printed and issued because the agencies conducting the survey discontinued the process due to administrative and technical issues. MCD further stated that the petitioner’s case would be covered in a fresh survey, subject to applicable conditions and the decision of the competent authority.
The MCD also informed the Court that a site inspection had found that the petitioner was not vending at the location claimed in the petition. The Court noted that the petitioner was presently not vending and that the reasons for this were unclear.
Taking note of the fact that the TVC-II elections had been completed and the Committee was likely to be constituted shortly, while the petitioner had already been an approved vendor in the 2021 survey, the Court directed the Assistant Commissioner, MCD, Najafgarh Zone, to identify a vending site for the petitioner in the Vasant Kunj area.
The petitioner was permitted to vend from the identified site until TVC-II takes a decision on his Certificate of Vending. He was directed to appear before the Assistant Commissioner on September 30, 2026 at 11:30 AM, while the site is to be identified by October 10, 2026.
Considering the petitioner’s disability and the fact that he had been operating a tea stall, the Court further permitted him to operate a stationary tea stall.
The Court imposed conditions applicable to vendors operating under the category of Food Snacks with gas cylinder/fire. These include use of only a small or medium-sized gas cylinder, restriction of the vending activity to the designated space without encroaching on pedestrian areas, maintenance of cleanliness and hygiene with a dustbin near the stall, and a prohibition on erecting any permanent or temporary construction.
The directions remain subject to the decision of TVC-II concerning its policy for disabled persons and verification of the petitioner’s credentials. The Court also clarified that the directions would remain subject to any plan formulated by the Vending Committee under Section 21 of the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, and that the petitioner would not acquire any vested right on the basis of the interim arrangement.
The petition was accordingly disposed of.
