The Supreme Court has remitted back to the Bombay High Court the dispute between hawkers on Colaba Causeway, or Shahid Bhagat Singh Road, and local residents who want illegal stalls on the road to be removed.
On March 3, the court extended the stay on the eviction of 253 hawkers for another three months but transferred the dispute's hearing back to the Bombay High Court which will hear the matter on March 21.
On January 27, the apex court ordered the stay on the eviction of hawkers after the Colaba Causeway Tourism Hawkers Stall Union, filed a Special Leave Petition against the dismissal of their contempt petition by the Bombay High Court on December 12, 2024.
The hawkers had argued that the Bombay High Court order dismissing their petition against their eviction by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation was 'ex facie erroneous and cryptic' and passed without considering that the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vendors) Act, 2014, implemented by the central government in May 2014, was not notified by the state government. They said that the eviction raids by municipal teams violate their fundamental right to livelihood.
Advocate Prerak Choudhary, a resident of Colaba and a member of the Clean Heritage Colaba Residents Association (CHCRA) said that they were at the court to intervene in the matter as the stay order in January was passed without hearing them out.
"The residents of Colaba are affected because of hawkers taking over their pavements. We were prepared to make our submissions before the honorable apex court but as the matter now stands remanded back to the High Court, we will file our intervention before the honorable high court," said Choudhary who added that Colaba residents will now file an intervention application in the Bombay High Court against the stay on the eviction.
Colaba residents said they were happy that the matter was remanded back to the local court. Pervez Cooper, vice-president of CHCRA said it is favourable that the matter has come to the Bombay High Court. "The hawkers have encroached the entire footpath from Cafe Mondegar to the temple. We have suggested alternatives like shifting them near the museum where the footpaths are wider. Colaba is in an absolute mess because of the hawkers and double parking," said Cooper. "We are not against anybody's livelihood. There is a solution to the hawker's issue, but there has to be a will to implement it. Colaba will regain its old charm."
