Bombay High Court Orders Verification Of All Mumbai Hawkers, Directs Action Against Illegal Foreign Nationals
The court further directed that there should be no delay in proceedings and deportation process of such individuals, especially from Bangladesh.
Published : March 23, 2026 at 10:07 PM IST
Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Monday the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) authorities to conduct a thorough verification of all street vendors in Mumbai and initiate strict action against illegal Bangladesh infiltrators, who are operating as hawkers. Apart from legal proceedings, the court has also ordered to initiate deportation process for such individuals.
The order was issued by a bench comprising Justice Ajay Gadkari and Justice Kamal Khata after hearing multiple petitions on the issue.
The order comes after long-standing repeated requests of encroachment on roads, footpaths, and public spaces across the city as unauthorised vendors have been hindering pedestrian movement. The court said that illegal hawkers have caused inconvenience to citizens and have also impacted the livelihoods of licensed vendors.
The court further directed that there should be no delay in proceedings and deportation process of such individuals, especially from Bangladesh. The court noted that any delay or negligence in implementing its orders would result in personal accountability of the concerned civic officials.
Additionally, the court refused to grant interim relief for a two-week stay on implementation of the Street Vendors’ Act requested by hawkers’ associations. The court observed that despite multiple legal proceedings and earlier guidelines, the law has not been effectively implemented. The court warned that further delay will not be justified and directed immediate enforcement of its orders.
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