Rajinder Kumar vs New-Delhi Muncipal Council And Ors

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* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHIAT NEW DELHI
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Date of decision: 13 March, 2026
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Uploaded on: 17 March, 2026
+ W.P.(C) 3226/2026
RAJINDER KUMAR .....Petitioner
Through: Mr. Nagendra Kumar Sahoo, Adv.
versus
NEW-DELHI MUNCIPAL COUNCIL AND ORS......Respondents
Through: Mr. Sriharsha Peechara, Standing
Counsel for NDMC with Mr Aditya
Bharat Manubarwala, ASC, Mr
Soumit Ganguli, Ms Ravicha Sharma,
Ms Madhu Yadav, Ms Shruti Agarwal
& Mr. Akash Sharma. Advocates. (M:
9717466788)
Mr. Husain Taqvi, Sr. Panel Counsel
with Ms. Soumya Saxena, Mr. Hamza,
Mr. Waseem & Ms. Madiha,
Advocates for R-3. (M: 9911694947)
CORAM:
JUSTICE PRATHIBA M. SINGH
JUSTICE MADHU JAIN
Prathiba M. Singh, J. (Oral)
1. This hearing has been done through hybrid mode.
CM APPL.15566/2026 (for exemption)
2. Allowed, subject to all just exceptions. Application is disposed of.
W.P.(C) 3226/2026
3. The present petition has been filed by the Petitioner- Rajinder Kumar
under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, inter alia , seeking directions to
the Respondents to conduct the survey of the Petitioner and issue a Certificate
W.P.(C) 3226/2026 Page 1 of 5
Signature Not Verified
Digitally Signed
By:DEVANSHU JOSHI
Signing Date:17.03.2026
15:50:40

of vending (hereinafter, ‘CoV’) .
4. The case of the Petitioner is that he is a garbage collector and has been
squatting since 1976 and collecting garbage from various shops in and around
Block H-15, Outside Parking, Connaught Place, New Delhi (hereinafter, ‘the
site’ ).
5. Being aggrieved by the inaction of the Respondents for not permitting
the Petitioner to carry out garbage collection from the said site in Connaught
Place, the Petitioner had filed W.P.(C) 4458/2017 titled ‘ Rajender Kumar v.
New Delhi Municipal Council ’. In W.P.(C) 4458/2017 , vide order dated 22nd
May, 2017 the Court had directed as under:
“ The petitioner submits that the petitioner collects
garbage from various offices and shops in the area of
H-Block, Connaught Place and puts them in large gunny
bags.
Attention of this Court has been drawn to the
photographs filed at page 16 of the paper book. He
submits that the officers of the respondents are
harassing him and not allowing him to temporarily store
the garbage bags till the time he can collect the garbage
from various shops and offices and then transport them
to the garbage dumps. He submits that he is not carrying
any vending activities, he is not selling any items
collected by him in the varandah, but varandah is used
temporarily till the garbage items collected by him are
transported out.
Learned counsel for the respondents who have
entered appearance on notice submits that the
documents placed on record give an impression that the
petitioner wants to use the varandah of H-Block for
vending and selling kabari.
W.P.(C) 3226/2026 Page 2 of 5
Signature Not Verified
Digitally Signed
By:DEVANSHU JOSHI
Signing Date:17.03.2026
15:50:40

Mr.Sahoo, counsel appearing on behalf of the
petitioner submits that the apprehension of the learned
counsel for the respondents is unfounded and baseless
as the petitioner simply wishes to store the
kabari/garbage collected from various shops and offices
temporarily (for a few hours) on an average of two
gunny bags till it is collected and then transported out.
Having regard to the submissions made and if the
petitioner is only a regular ragpicker and garbage
collector and he is placing one/ or two of the gunny
bags in the varandah temporarily till he transports the
same in one or two hours, in our view, the respondents
should not interfere in carrying out his activity.
We, however, make it clear that the petitioner
cannot be allowed to store kabad or garbage collected
by him for more than one/two hours and cannot be
allowed to carry any business of vending/selling from
the site in question.
Petition is disposed of accordingly.
CM 19468/2017
Dismissed in view of order passed in the writ petition
above.”
6. In terms of the above order, the Court had allowed the Petitioner to
store one or two gunny bags for two hours, temporarily in the vedrandah of
the site. However, it was made clear that the Petitioner cannot carry out
business of vending from the said site.
7. The present petition is the second round of litigation by the Petitioner.
8. Mr. Nagendra Kumar Sahoo, ld. Counsel appearing for the Petitioner
relies upon Section 225 of the New Delhi Municipal Council Act, 1994
(‘ NDMC Act’ ) to argue that under this provision, permission can be granted
W.P.(C) 3226/2026 Page 3 of 5
Signature Not Verified
Digitally Signed
By:DEVANSHU JOSHI
Signing Date:17.03.2026
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by the NDMC for the Petitioner to vend. The said provision is extracted
below for ready reference:
“ 225. Prohibition of deposit, etc., of things in streets.—
(1) No person shall, except with the permission of the
Chairperson and on payment of such fee as he in each
case thinks fit, place or deposit upon any street, or upon
any open channel, drain or well in any street or upon
any public place any stall, chair, bench, box, ladder,
bale, or other thing whatsoever so as to form an
obstruction thereto or encroachment thereon.
(2) Nothing in sub-section (1) applies to building
material.”
9. Ld. Counsel for the Respondents on the other hand submits that the
Petitioner cannot be given any CoV as he is not a vendor.
10. The Court has heard ld. Counsels for the parties. In the opinion of this
nd
Court, vide order dated 22 May, 2017, the Petitioner has already been
permitted to carry out the garbage collection activity, in terms of the said
order.
11. Being a garbage collector, the Petitioner cannot claim any right in
respect of verandah of the site, as he is not a vendor.
12. In view thereof, as the Petitioner has already been directed by order
nd
dated 22 May, 2017, to carry out his garbage collection activities, no further
orders are liable to be passed in favour of the Petitioner.
13. It is made clear that under the garb of garbage collection, the Petitioner
cannot sell any other wares or goods from any location in and around the said
site, as the Connaught Place area is a No-vending zone.
W.P.(C) 3226/2026 Page 4 of 5
Signature Not Verified
Digitally Signed
By:DEVANSHU JOSHI
Signing Date:17.03.2026
15:50:40

14. Accordingly, the present petition is disposed of in these terms. Pending
applications, if any, are also disposed of.
PRATHIBA M. SINGH
JUDGE
MADHU JAIN
JUDGE
MARCH 13, 2026/ dk/sm
W.P.(C) 3226/2026 Page 5 of 5
Signature Not Verified
Digitally Signed
By:DEVANSHU JOSHI
Signing Date:17.03.2026
15:50:40