Updated on Nov 4, at 11.15 a.m.

Ahead of Diwali festivities, luxury bus operators requested the court allow the entry of private buses in Ahmedabad from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Rejecting the urgent plea of private bus operators, a bench comprising chief justice Sunita Agarwal and justice Aniruddha Mayee held that private buses won’t be allowed in the city despite the festivities and that the matter is not urgent.

The bench also held that luxury buses caused many grave accidents, risking various lives. 

The Gujarat high court held, “We have seen serious accidents happening on the SG highway, and people died on the spot. The police authorities have the right to limit any vehicle, make the rules, and decide the routes. It is not their duty to explain the difference between public and private vehicles.”

The next hearings were scheduled after Diwali vacation.

Updated on Oct 20

The Gujarat high court on Oct 19 upheld the direction of the city police commissioner to prohibit private buses within the city limits during the day. The private bus operators of the city had challenged the police notification restricting the entry of private buses in the city from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

The Ahmedabad police commissioner had issued a notification in Jan 2022 to restrict the entry of private buses under Section 33 (1) (b) and (c) of the Gujarat Police Act.

Travel companies opposed decision

This notification was challenged by many travel companies through a writ challenging the police decision, seemingly inappropriate and illegal, as they believed that the decision was a breach of their constitutional rights. According to the business owners, their business was also affected by the restriction.

For the public interest

Public prosecutor Jyoti Bhatt in her response stated, “The decision by the police commissioner to restrict private luxury buses between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. is totally legal, appropriate, and reasonable.”

“Luxury buses are listed under heavy vehicles. The notification was issued under Section 33(1)(b) and (c) as per the law. As the police commissioner has to control traffic, pollution, and accidents in the city, the decision holds huge public interest, making it valid,” Bhatt added.

She also mentioned that traffic in 2023 is 10 times higher than when the order was issued in 2004. If heavy vehicles are allowed now, it may create havoc in the city with parking and traffic issues, and road accidents.

Justice Vaibhavi D Nanavati stated in her judgment, “The restrictions would not result in a violation of the travel company’s fundamental rights, as Articles 301 or 304 are not being violated in this decision.”

Even the Supreme Court, in a related judgment has cleared the matter taking into account the traffic and public interest, which makes the police commissioner’s notification completely in the lines of the law. It does not infringe the constitutional rights of the business owners, therefore, the writ has been rejected.

CCTV footage of a violation

There is several CCTV footage evidence in which it is apparent that private luxury buses violated the police notification.

In the last month, luxury buses violated the direction at least 35 times, and the proof of that also led to the rejection of the petition.

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