The Pancharatna Hawkers/Vendors Welfare Association, comprising 75 members owning stalls near Opera House at Charni Road in South Mumbai, in their petition have said that they were evicted from the area soon after the 13/7 bomb blasts.
Three near-simultaneous blasts in the crowded areas of Opera House, Zaveri Bazaar (in South Mumbai) and Dadar (in Central Mumbai) killed 27 people and left 127 injured on July 13 last year.
"Till July 13, 2011 the Association members were carrying out their business at Opera House. However after the blasts, the city police illegally stopped them from putting up their stalls at the spot," the petition said.
According to the Association, they have been locked in a dispute with the City Municipal Corporation and police over hawking at the spot.
"In 2000, the High Court had directed BMC to implement a scheme of regulating hawking zones in the city. The civic body had then deleted Opera House as a hawking zone. This was challenged in the Supreme Court by hawkers and in 2003 the apex court had ordered for status quo to be maintained by which hawkers were allowed to run their stalls," it said.
The petition further said that when the hawkers went to set up their stalls after the blast they were pushed around and allegedly lathi-charged by the police.
"Letters have been sent to the Corporation and police requesting permission to resume business but no reply has been received. At all other places which have witnesses terror attacks normalcy has been restored," the petition states.
The Association has sought directions to be issued to the police and civic body to permit them to resume business.
A division bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar and A R Joshi posted the matter for hearing on August 22.
