“Practice of permitting hand-pulled rickshaws needs to be stopped,” the Supreme Court

Recently, while hearing an application related to the introduction of e-rickshaws in the hill town of Matheran in Maharashtra, the Supreme Court (SC) of India took a serious view of the continuation of the practice of hand-pulled carts/ rickshaws after 78 years of Independence. The SC bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) BR Gavai, Justice NV Anjaria, and Justice K Vinod Chandran said that the hand-pulled carts/ rickshaws were inhuman and need to be abolished. The bench opined that such activity is violative of the right to dignity of the individuals. It observed, “Permitting such a practice, which is against the basic concept of human dignity in a country like India, which is a developing country, belittles the constitutional promises of social and economic justice.” 

While delivering the order, the SC bench referred to the decision in the Azad Rickhaw Pullers Union (Regd.) vs State Of Punjab & Others, where it held that the practice of allowing hand-pulled carts/ rickshaws was against the goal of social justice. It added, “It is really unfortunate that 45 years after the observation made by this Court in the case of Azad Rickshaw Pullers Union, the practice of a human being pulling another human being is still prevalent in the town of Matheran.”

After hearing the matter, the SC bench observed, “The question that we ask ourselves is whether this practice is alive to the Constitutional promise of social and economic equality and social and economic justice. The answer will, unfortunately, have to be in the negative. To continue such human practice even after 78 years of independence and after 75 years of the Constitution being enacted and promising social and economic Justice to its citizens, however, would be betraying the promise given by the people of India given to themselves. We therefore find that the practice of permitting hand-pulled rickshaws needs to be stopped forthwith.”