Delhi HC dismisses plea against road blockades, says ‘traffic authorities best judges’

Traffic authorities are the best judge to decide the issue of regulation of traffic in the city, the Delhi High Court said, dismissing a plea seeking a direction to the police to remove blockades on the Mathura Road crossing.

Rejecting a plea seeking a direction to the police to remove certain blockades on the Mathura Road crossing, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday said traffic authorities are the best judges to decide on the regulation of traffic in the city.

In a PIL, advocate Mamta Rani sought the removal of barricades placed on the crossings of Mathura Road, preventing a right turn while approaching either the Supreme Court main building or the Delhi High Court from the additional building of the Supreme Court.

The plea submitted that due to the barricades, a distance of about 300-400 meters while travelling from the apex court’s additional building to its main building has increased to more than 5 kilometers, which is not only time consuming but also causes wastage of fuel.

A Bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad, however, reminded that a number of cars that are parked on the roads in front of the High Court and in the lanes alongside it hinder the traffic too.

The Delhi government’s standing counsel submitted that for the first time, the stretch has become signal and congestion-free and it is a permanent arrangement now.

“Traffic control is the sole domain of the traffic police. It is well settled that courts do not run the country and it is up to the administration to take decisions for smooth functioning of the Government,” the Bench added.

It noted that it is not inclined to sit over as an appellate authority over the decisions taken by the traffic authorities for regulating the movement of traffic in the city. “In view of the above, this court is not inclined to entertain the instant PIL. Resultantly, the PIL is dismissed,” the High Court said.