Plea in SC against govt’s guidelines for handling end-of-life vehicles

A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the Delhi Government’s policy for mandatory scrapping of old vehicles. Petitioner N Laxmi Narayan contended that mandatory scrapping of 10-year-old diesel and 15-year-old petrol vehicles, irrespective of their roadworthiness, under...

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, Updated At : 07:54 AM Sep 20, 2024 IST

Photo for representational purpose only. File photo

A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the Delhi Government’s policy for mandatory scrapping of old vehicles.

Petitioner N Laxmi Narayan contended that mandatory scrapping of 10-year-old diesel and 15-year-old petrol vehicles, irrespective of their roadworthiness, under the Guidelines for Handling End of Life Vehicle in Public Place, 2024, was arbitrary.

The guidelines are based on an order passed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in 2015 that was upheld by the Supreme Court.

However, Narayan submitted, “The retrospective application of the guidelines to vehicles is arbitrary, violates the applicant’s legitimate expectation and deprives the applicant of their right to property under Article 300A of the Constitution.”

The scrapping rules were being applied without due consideration of vehicles’ actual emissions or condition, causing undue hardship to owners, he pointed out. Well-maintained vehicles should not be taken off the roads, he said.

The sudden enforcement of the scrapping policy went against vehicles’ lawful terms of purchase, he said, adding the policy should be made applicable prospectively and compensation should be given to those from economically lower sections of society.

The Delhi Government had in February issued fresh guidelines for handling end-of-life vehicles in public places, stipulating a penalty of Rs 10,000 for four-wheelers and Rs 5,000 for two-wheelers to be imposed on the owners of the impounded vehicles before they are released.

Any end-of-life vehicle impounded for a second time and transport vehicles running on diesel fuel and aged more than 10 years cannot be released.

(With PTI inputs)