A notice has been issued to the New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) from Delhi High Court in a PIL for the purpose of closing restaurants on terraces in Khan Market and Connaught Place on grounds of safety.
Manjit Singh, the petitioner prayed before Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar of Divison Bench, for the closure of the restaurants which are present on terrace of these two posh markets due to the safety of the general public and stated that these restaurants imperil their right to life under Article 21.
In regard to Khan Market it was stated that:
“Most of the establishments do not possess an NOC from the Delhi Fire Department on the ground that they are not assembly buildings under the National Building Code, 2005 and therefore do not attract Rule 27 of the Delhi Fire Rules, 2010.”
In regard of Connaught place it was stated that Municipal Corporation had given permission to open their restaurants on the terrace for the purpose of cleaning and removal of items/articles therefrom, but with this limited permission they started their fully fledged commercial operations.
It was also mentioned that the restaurants in Khan Market and Connaught place are serving liquor in the balconies and open areas, which is a violation of the permission granted by the Excise Department.
The petitioner also said that:
“The interpretation of the law, as it today stands, is to the effect that if a restaurant is 49 seater then it does not qualify as an assembly building and therefore does not warrant an NOC from the Fire Department, however if it is a 50 seater restaurant, it would be an assembly building and therefore would be an occupancy which is likely to cause a risk of fire. Therefore, the prescription of 50 persons, being unfounded on any intelligible differentia, is also hit by Article 14 of the Constitution of India and deserves to be reconsidered by the authorities.”
Courtesy/By: Risabh
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24 Dec 2017
