The Supreme Court on Friday held that the right to walk on a demarcated footpath is a fundamental right. This right shall have priority over movement by motorised vehicles, the Supreme Court said.
The right to walk on a demarcated footpath is a fundamental right under Article 19(1)(d) of the Constitution, the court said.
The Court observed that the duty to demarcate, construct, maintain and safeguard footpaths and other pedestrian infrastructure rests with urban development authorities, municipal corporations, municipalities and panchayats, according to Live Law.
A bench of justices PS Narasimha and AS Chandurkar held that a citizen's fundamental right to walk on a demarcated footpath is primary and shall have priority over movement by motorised vehicles.
The declaration by the top court came in an unfortunate motor accident compensation case where a father lost his five-year-old son while taking him to school.
The Court has recognised that despite the primacy of the right to walk, it has been overtaken by movement by motorised vehicles to the extent that walking has now been considered as a nuisance by drivers.
"It could also be elitism to start with, for machines with wheels were only for the rich, but as economies progressed and cheaper motor vehicles were introduced, the entire spectrum of motorised transportation dominated the roads, pushed aside the walkers to the extent that they are treated as a nuisance for the drivers who routinely run over the walkers and their footpaths.
This should stop from now on as we declare the fundamental right to walk on demarcated footpaths alongside motorised roads," the bench underscored.
"The right to walk is a fundamental right under Part III of the Constitution. It is integral to the right to movement guaranteed under Article 19(1)(d), read with Article 19(1)(a), Article 19(1) (b), Article 19(1) (c) and Article 21 of the Constitution of India. The fundamental right to walk will take within its sweep the right to demarcated footpaths. These rights are primary and shall have priority over movement by motorised vehicles," the bench ruled.
It held that the fundamental right to walk on demarcated footpaths has a correlative duty and "If the road exists, there is a duty to ensure that there are demarcated and well-maintained footpaths for walkers".
"The violation of the right to walk on demarcated footpaths will entitle the citizens to invoke constitutional and legal remedies against duty bearers for restitution and compensation.
This remedy is independent of the remedies that are available under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988," it said.
It directed the registry to send the judgement to the central ministries and law commission for initiating the necessary legal framework.
It further said that the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, was not and has never been the statute that recognises the fundamental right to walk and in fact, the law has been an impediment and, in many ways, undermined the precious rights of walkers.
"The absence of safe and comfortable footpaths to walk on, and even when they exist, their subjugation to motor transport, has been a civilizational problem," it said, adding that all that the fundamental right to walk demands was a comfortable space for an easy and carefree walk.
The top court enhanced the motor accident claim compensation to Rs 11, 44,628 lakh payable to the father of the deceased child within two months and set aside the high court order reducing it.
It directed the registry to register the case with title "Re: Fundamental Right to Walk and Footpath" and impleaded the Centre through Ministries of Housing and Urban Affairs, Rural Development and Road Transport and Highways, as parties and sought the assistance of ASG KM Nataraj in the matter.
(With inputs from PTI)