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The Delhi High Court bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh on has sought the response of the Centre and Delhi Police on a plea seeking removal of unnecessary mobile police barricades installed on city roads and in residential colonies.

The PIL filed by Jan Sewak Welfare Society contends that unmindful and erratic installation of mobile police barricades on Delhi Roads and in residential colonies in utter violation of its own guidelines contained in the Standing Order No. 329/2018.

The petitioner has contended that it is evident that mismanagement and unprofessional attitude of the Delhi Police in installation of iron barricades on several roads all over Delhi causes grave hardship and inconvenience to the safety, security and welfare of the public and that on several occasions, the installation of chained barricades on the roads have proved to be fatal as well.

The plea states that the police’s own Standing Order stipulates that mobile barricades are important and effective tools to maintain law and order, control crowd, regulate the flow of vehicular traffic, ensure security checking at VVIP functions and also to check crime and apprehend criminals, however, that the mobile barricades are being used in a haphazard manner, and stolen, and a few displaying names of a particular police station are found in the jurisdiction of another police station.

One of the grounds of the present petition is based on “sanctity of life”.

The petition states that these unnecessary barricades are against the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution which guarantees right to life elaborately understood as safe, secured and dignified life of the citizens of India.

The plea states that it is the duty of the state to respect the sanctity of human life and, thus, to value and preserve human life in all state actions, including in the putting up of such mobile barricades by the police.

The matter will now be heard on November 24.

Cause Title: Jan Sewak Welfare Society v. Union of India