Delhi High Court expresses concern over rise in bogus, blackmailing kind of PILs

The Delhi High Court on Thursday expressed concerns over the rise in "bogus" or "blackmailing" kind of PILs and said nowadays everyone has become a "champion" of such pleas and were behaving like "super police commissioners".

"Most PILs (nowadays) are bogus or of blackmailing kind. Everyone is a champion of filing such PILs," a bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Prateek Jalan said while declining to entertain a PIL against mushrooming of hookah bars in south Delhi.

The high court said not a single PIL is filed with regard to non-payment or evasion of taxes and only pleas against illegal construction or unauthorised buildings were being filed primarily.

"Everyone is walking around like super police commissioners, saying this law is being violated, that rule is being violated. Take up any city in the country, take up any Act and you will find a number of violations. But no one sees the instances of tax evasion or non-payment of taxes," the bench remarked.

On the PIL against hookah bars, the bench said that the petitioner -- a law clerk -- has not made even one such establishment as a party nor has pointed out which bar was in violation of the norms and only general allegations have been made.

The high court said the petitioner should do some homework before filing a PIL and pleas with such general allegations cannot be entertained.

The petition had contended that the hookah bars were "operating illegally without statutory requisite licenses and clearances from appropriate authorities and in further violation of laws relating to prohibition of sale/consumption of tobacco to persons under eighteen years of age".

The bench said it was allowing the petition to be withdrawn without imposing any cost as the petitioner was a clerk who works in courts and also in view of the prevailing pandemic.