CHENNAI :A division bench of the HC has closed a contempt application seeking to punish former and present IAS and IPS officers who manned respective offices, for not implementing the orders of the Court passed in 2008 banning motorised fish carts in city.
A bench of Justices M Venugopal and P D Audikesavalu closed the application from ‘Traffic’ KR Ramaswamy, a social activist, after recording a circular dated August 24, 2016 of the Greater Chennai Police Commissioner instructing all subordinate police officers to take necessary action against fish cart vehicles fitted with motor without valid registration and prevent them from plying in the city. The instruction should be scrupulously followed by all personnel in future, the circular said.
To ensure that police effectively monitor prevention of unauthorised use of fish carts, the official respondents should submit a report every year of the action taken against the violators before the Registrar (Judicial) on or before January 31 the following year, the bench said.
“In as much as this court is subjectively satisfied that the official respondents have taken appropriate steps/measures in compliance of the order dated January 25, 2008, the irresistible and inescapable conclusion is that officials have not committed any wilful disobedience of the order requiring initiation of action for contempt proceedings, the bench said and closed it.