The Traffic Regulatory Committee under Section 72 of the Kerala Police Act is the appropriate authority to resolve disputes regarding parking in public places.

JUDGMENT

The writ petition is filed to direct the respondents

2 and 3 to afford adequate police protection to the petitioners from the illegal acts being committed by the 7^th respondent and his men, who are restraining the petitioners from parking their autorickshaws in three places mentioned in the writ petition.

2. The 2^nd petitioner is the owner and the 1^st petitioner is the driver of an auto-taxi which is operating in the Chalakkudy Municipality area. The 7^th respondent is preventing the 1^st petitioner from parking the said auto-taxi in three places mentioned in the writ petition. Even though the petitioners submitted a complaint before the 3^rd respondent, no action has been taken in the matter. The inaction on the part of the 3^rd respondent is arbitrary. Hence, the writ petition.

3. Heard; the learned counsel for the petitioners, the learned Government Pleader and the learned Standing Counsel appearing for the 5^th respondent and the additional 8^th respondent.

4. The principal dispute in the writ petition is the objection raised by the 7^th respondent regarding the parking of the petitioners' auto-taxi in three public places in the Chalakkudy Municipality.

9. Section 72 of the Kerala Police Act reads as follows:

“72 Traffic Regulatory Committees (1) In every Grama Panchayath, Municipality and Corporation Traffic Regulatory Committees shall be constituted as may be prescribed, for regulating matters in respect of traffic (2) The concerned head of the Local Government institution shall be the Chariman of the Traffic Regulatory Committee and the nominees of the District Magistrate, the District Police Chief, the Regional Transport Officer and the Executive Engineer of Public Works Department shall be the members of the said Committee.

(3) The Traffic Regulatory Committee shall issue orders, not inconsistent with the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (Central Act 59 of 1988) and the Kerala Road Safety Act, 2007 (Act 8 of 2007) and the rules made thereunder, for preventing danger, obstruction and inconvenience caused to the general public in respect of traffic in the following matters. Such orders issued shall be complied with by the Government Departments concerned, the officers and the general public, namely :- (a) regulate the manner and time of traffic of all kinds in public places;

(b) regulate the gateways, festoons, banners, hoardings, signs, re Presentations, illuminated displays, construction activity, trade, welding, environmental pollution, nuisance by noise, blasting of rocks, mining, bursting of crackers, flying of kites and fireworks etc , seen in any property m the manner having the possibility of distracting attention of the public road users or causing danger to them;

(c) regulate the manner and mode of conveyance of timber, poles, ladders, iron girders, beams, iron bars, boilers, hay, soil and articles difficult in handling, etc along the streets;

(d) regulate the carrying of any explosive substances or hazardous chemicals along public places which may cause danger to road users;

(e) close certain streets or instruct that no one shall enter in certain places under circumstances that there is reasonable apprehension of danger from buildings which are on the verge of collapse or due to other reasons;

(f) regulate the manner and means of entry from streets and public places to private buildings and places situated on the road side;

(g) fix the manner in which the members of the general public may voluntarily assist in traffic management without causing any financial liability in that respect to the State or the Police Department”.

5. Interpreting the above provision, this Court in Sreekumaran Nair T.S. vs. Neyyattinkara Municipality [2023 KHC OnLine 10345] has held as follows:

“6. (7). S.72 of the Kerala Police Act provide for constitution of a Traffic Regulatory Committee in all local authorities for regulating the manner and time of traffic of all kinds in public places, which includes power to demarcate autoricksh