Delhi HC temporarily stops e-rickshaw services in the city

The Delhi High Court today directed the state government to stop e-rickshaws from plying on city roads till the next hearing of the case on August 14.

Lawyer Sugreev Dubey told ANI, "The e-rickshaws are plying in an illegal way on the roads. They don't have any right to be on the roads. They don't have tokens, RC or any registration number and insurance. Therefore, their plying on roads is very dangerous."

Meanwhile, the lawyer of the E-rickshaw Association, R K Kapoor, said, "Unfortunately, some incident took place yesterday and on account of that incident, the Court has put a ban on the running of these e-rickshaws. But the question is just by one incident, it cannot be generalized that all the e-rickshaws should be banned."

"The very fact that the e-rickshaws have been running for such a long time and giving such public service, therefore if one or two incidents have happened, they are condemnable. Those who are responsible, they should be punished, appropriate civil and criminal action should be initiated against that person," Kapoor told ANI.

A child had been badly burnt yesterday in Delhi's Trilokpuri area after his mother was hit by an e-rickshaw and the child fell from her lap into a frying pan of a sweet shop.

E-rickshaws, which were started in 2012, have mushroomed in the city in recent months. They provide the much needed last mile connectivity to residents but have also been in the news because of various mishaps.

They are not covered under the Motor Vehicles Act as they are battery operated and are therefore non-regulated.