The Delhi High Court on Wednesday pulled up the Central government and the Indian Railways for their lackadaisical approach in a plea seeking safety measures to prevent stampedes at railway stations. .A Division Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia noted that the public interest litigation (PIL) was filed in the aftermath of the stampede at New Delhi Railway Station (NDLS) in February 2025, which killed 18 people. The Court observed that when the case was heard for the first time on February 19, 2025, Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta had appeared for the government and stated that the concerns raised would be examined by the Railway Board at the highest level.However, nearly a year after the case was filed, the government had failed to file its response to the PIL, the Court said. “Mr Counsel, take this matter seriously. Don’t take the court for granted…We don’t appreciate this. Just to sail through the pressure when the PIL was filed, a statement was made by the highest law officer [SG Tushar Mehta]. But thereafter, it’s been a year, and you have not even filed an affidavit," Chief Justice Upadhyaya remarked today. .The Bench then granted the Railways four weeks time to file its affidavit."Affidavit was to be filed by March 26, 2025. However, the said affidavit does not appear to be in sight till date. Counsel for the respondent states that various steps have been taken to prevent overcrowding, and the affidavit as required by the court vide order dated February 19 will be filed in four weeks. Time is granted. However, while filing this affidavit, the steps taken by the Railway Board shall be detailed," the Court ordered.It then listed the case for further consideration next month..The PIL was filed last year by Arth Vidhi, a group of lawyers, entrepreneurs and other professionals, in the backdrop of the stampede which resulted into death of at least 18 people at NDLS. The station was overcrowded due to the rush of people wanting to take part in the Maha Kumbh in Uttar Pradesh. It was stated that said that various legal provisions and rules under the Railways Act should be implemented properly to prevent such incidents in future..Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.
