Jharkhand HC expresses concern over illegal parking in Jamshedpur, issues notice to JNAC

Mail News Service

Ranchi, June 16: In a recent hearing held on June 16, 2023, Writ No. 2161/2023, the Hon’ble Jharkhand High Court’s division bench, consisting of Chief Justice Sanjay Mishra and Justice Anand Sen, issued a notice to Jamshedpur Notified Area Committee (JNAC). The notice comes after the court heard the arguments presented by Advocate Akhilesh Srivastava on behalf of petitioner Nishikant Singh.

Nishikant Singh had successfully bid for a contract issued by JNAC, granting him the responsibility of operating parking systems in Jamshedpur’s Group 7 and 8 areas. The contract, settled at an annual amount of ₹58,70,000/-, required Singh to deposit ₹29,35,000/- as earnest money and security with JNAC.

However, upon inspecting the designated parking areas on April 30, 2023, Singh discovered that the shopkeepers and businessmen in the vicinity were already parking vehicles there. When he requested payment from them, they claimed rights over the lands for years and rejected his demand. Singh promptly informed JNAC on May 9, 2023, urging the removal of the encroachment from the parking areas. Despite subsequent letters from Singh reiterating his request, JNAC took no action to address the issue and instead pressured Singh to pay the full amount.

Due to Singh’s failure to pay the remaining ₹29,35,000/-, he was disqualified from a new tender initiated by JNAC. Advocate Akhilesh Srivastava argued that JNAC is an unconstitutional and illegal statutory body. He further claimed that the State Government in Jamshedpur had not established any municipal corporation or traditional tribal community, as mandated by the Constitution’s 73rd and 74th Amendments.

The court responded by issuing notice to JNAC, treating it as a state instrument, and refraining from issuing notice to the government. Notably, a similar case (Writ No. 2156/2023) filed by Putul Pandey was heard on June 13, 2023, wherein the court also issued notice to JNAC. Advocates Akhilesh Srivastava, Ashok Jha, and Manjari Sinha are representing the petitioners in both cases. Srivastava stated that since the petitioners are deemed incapable of challenging the constitutionality of JNAC, they intend to file a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking the declaration of JNAC as unconstitutional. The PIL will also aim to permanently prohibit JNAC from engaging in illegal, corrupt, and unwarranted actions that have allegedly compromised the ecological balance of Jamshedpur and violated the human rights of its residents.