Supreme Court Issues Notice On VHP's Plea Seeking Permission To Offer Free Transport Services For Sabarimala Pilgrims

The Supreme Court on Thursday (January 25) issued notice on a petition filed by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad seeking permission to operate vehicles offering free transport for Sabarimala pilgrims in Nilakkal to Pampa route. The Court sought the responses of the State of Kerala and the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation.

A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and KV Viswanathan was hearing a Special Leave Petition filed by the VHP challenging a judgment delivered by the Kerala High Court in April 2023 rejecting the plea.

Senior Advocate V Chitambaresh, appearing for the organisation, told the bench that till the COVID season, vehicles were allowed till Pampa, from where the 6 KM trek to the Sabarimala shrine starts. The distance between Nilakkal and Pampa is 22 kilometres and only the KSRTC buses are allowed to ply in this route, he submitted.

Chitambaresh said that the VHP offered to do free services. When the bench asked if the petitioner was asking for a stage carriage permit or a contract carriage permit, Chitambaresh said that the organisation just wanted to offer free services, which the government is not allowing. Presently, only the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation is allowed to operate on this route.

"Lakhs and lakhs of devotees are coming there. They are waiting for 28 hours, 30 hours in serpentine queues. The KSRTC is not running sufficient buses. They are not in good condition too," he submitted.

Before the High Court, the petitioner proposed free service from Nilakkal to Pamba and vice versa, by taking 20 contract carriages on lease for free transportation of the pilgrims. The High Court observed that if the petitioner was allowed to operate special permit vehicles with pick and drop at the start and terminal points, it will virtually become a stage carriage with a corridor restriction, which will violate permit conditions.

Case : Vishwa Hindu Parishad Kerala v. State of Kerala Diary No. 1752-2024

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