Hearing on Govt's sealing application on Oct 18

New Delhi, Oct 16: The Supreme Court today fixed October 18 for hearing the application of the Central Government as well as traders seeking modifications to the court's order of September 29 directing the authorities to resume sealing of the commercial premises operating from residential areas not covered by the government notification dated Septeber 7 and 15.

The impugned notification had permitted mixed land use of 2183 roads in the national capital.

The Union Urban Developmet Ministry, in its application mentioned through Additional Solicitor General Amarender Saran, pleaded before the court to hear the application on any day before November 1.

The government is seeking two reliefs from the court -- lifting the ban on issue till further notifications only with the prior permission of the court, and dispensing with the condition that all traders protected under the two impugned notifications would have to file affidavits of undertaking latest by November 10 stating therin, that if the impugned notifications are invalidated by this court they will immediately stop the misuse.

Senior counsel Mukul Rohatagi, appearing for traders who have filed affidavits of undertaking that they would stop the misuse on their own by June 30, the time for which was earlier extended upto September 15 and later to October 31, pleaded that those covered by the impugned notification may be allowed to continue.

A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal, Justice C K Thakker and Justice Altamas Kabir directed the applications to be heard on Wednesday.

According to the application filed by the Centre, there are practical difficulties in meeting the deadline for filing of the affidavit by lakhs of traders protected under the notification and further, if the notifications are quashed by the Court then there would be no necessity on any undertaking as these traders would have to autumatically go.

Over 40,000 traders, who have already filed affidavits of undertaking in terms of the court's order dated February 16, also want the order to be modified so that they are also allowed to continue like others who are protected by the notifications and not left to suffer for abiding by the court's order.

The government's plan of permitting commercial activities to additional 2000 roads in the national capital has also run into rough weather as per the court's direction, restraining the government from issuing any further notification without prior permission of the apex court.

UNI