Contempt plea in SC over Delhi Metro, rail curbs; home secretary, Delhi Police chief named

A contempt petition was filed in the Supreme Court on Saturday alleging that the Centre and Delhi authorities violated the court’s order against a blanket shutdown of Metro and train services and directing the publication of traffic advisories ahead of the proposed protest at Jantar Mantar.Police officers stand guard outside a closed metro station. (REUTERS)The petition, filed by advocate Shailendra Mani Tripathi, said that despite the court’s clear order requiring the Centre to ensure that the public was not inconvenienced in any manner, no traffic advisory had been published in newspapers and there had been no change in the decision to shut down 57 Metro stations and cancel several Delhi-bound trains terminating at New Delhi and Hazrat Nizamuddin stations.The contempt plea said, “Notwithstanding the solemn judicial mandate and the assurance recorded before the bench of the Chief Justice of India (CJI), the contemnors have consciously maintained a blanket shutdown across transit corridors, persisted with unwarranted train cancellations, and failed to issue or publicize transparent traffic and transit advisories.”The plea, filed on Saturday morning, names Union home secretary Govind Mohan, Delhi Police Commissioner Anurag Kumar, and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) chairperson D Thara as contemnors.Filed by advocate Chand Qureshi, the petition said, “This deliberate recalcitrance has severely crippled public life across the National Capital Territory, stranding essential travelers, and amounts to an intentional attempt to bypass and undermine the authority and majesty of this court.”A bench headed by CJI Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana had passed the order on Friday on a petition filed by CPI(M) general secretary MA Baby. Senior advocates Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Gopal Sankaranarayanan informed the court that the restrictions were so prohibitive that ordinary citizens would be inconvenienced as roads remained barricaded, major Metro stations were closed and trains were cancelled, amid other restrictions being imposed in the city ahead of the protest at Jantar Mantar. The police had denied permission to CJP and enforced strict vigilance and security measures to prevent any untoward incident.The court on Friday said, “We clarify that although there shall be no outright prohibition on the movement of Metro trains, a prudent decision may be made to permit the operation of Metro trains and other rail services in a suitable and regulated manner. Such a decision should be widely publicised to prevent further inconvenience.”It further said, “A traffic advisory shall also be published in respect of smooth movement of vehicles in newspapers and on online platforms to ensure that no hardship or inconvenience is caused to the public in the course of traveling within the city.”The court had directed the authorities to give wide publicity to ensure ample clarity on the prevailing circumstances and sought a compliance report in four days.