The Delhi High Court on Monday declined to grant interim relief against the Delhi government's decision to bar non-Delhi-registered vehicles that do not meet BS-VI emission standards from entering the national capital between November 1 and January 31.
A division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Nitin Wasudeo Sambre and Justice Sanjay Sharma issued notice on a petition challenging the restriction and directed that the matter be listed alongside a related case on November 27. With no interim stay granted, the restriction remains in force.
The petition was filed by Faridabad-based advocate Gurmukh Dass Kohli, challenging a June 23 notification issued by the Department of Environment and Forests. The notification prohibits the entry of vehicles registered outside Delhi that do not comply with BS-VI emission standards for a period of three months.
Petition alleges discrimination based on registration
Appearing for Kohli, advocate Anurag Saxena argued that Delhi needed a comprehensive pollution-control strategy rather than a piecemeal or knee-jerk response that treated otherwise identical vehicles differently based on where they were registered.
The petition contends that the restriction is arbitrary and discriminatory because pre-BS-VI vehicles registered in Delhi would continue to be allowed on the roads during the ban, while vehicles with similar emission standards registered in neighbouring states would be barred from entering the capital.
It argues that this distinction violates Article 14 of the Constitution, which guarantees equality before the law, as the classification is based on the place of registration rather than the vehicles' actual emission characteristics.
“The classification turns on the place of registration and not on emission. Exhaust does not change with the registering authority; the differentia has no nexus with the object of controlling pollution and fails the test of Article 14,” the petition stated.
The petitioner also argued that the restriction would disproportionately affect residents of the integrated National Capital Region (NCR), including advocates and litigants who regularly travel to Delhi for professional and personal reasons.
Plea questions blanket nature of restriction
The challenge also takes issue with the blanket nature of the prohibition, arguing that it would apply irrespective of the Air Quality Index (AQI) recorded on a particular day.
According to the petition, the notification itself provides for less restrictive alternatives, including year-round enforcement measures and higher parking charges, which could be considered instead of imposing a complete restriction on the entry of vehicles.
The plea cited the example of Kohli, who would be prevented from driving his registered Haryana vehicle into Delhi, even as a comparable BS-IV vehicle registered in the capital would remain outside the scope of the restriction.
“The petitioner will be barred from driving his duly registered Haryana vehicle into Delhi, while an otherwise comparable BS-IV vehicle registered in Delhi is outside the scope of the same restriction,” it submitted.
The petitioner has further argued that the revised Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) issued by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) in September does not envisage such a restriction.
Earlier hearing and wider concerns over NCR commuters
The matter had also been mentioned before the same bench on Friday, October 30, when the petitioner sought an urgent hearing ahead of the November 1 implementation date. The court declined to advance the hearing, observing that no grounds for immediate intervention had been made out and that alternative modes of transport were available.
The Delhi High Court Bar Association has separately written to the Acting Chief Justice, seeking exemptions from the restrictions for judges, lawyers and court staff who commute to Delhi from neighbouring NCR cities. The association pointed out that many legal professionals live in areas such as Noida, Gurugram and Ghaziabad because of the high cost of housing in the capital.
The restrictions form part of Delhi's winter pollution-control measures. BS-VI-compliant vehicles, along with CNG and electric vehicles, are among the categories permitted to enter the capital, subject to the applicable rules and exemptions. The curbs also cover certain interstate buses and commercial vehicles that do not meet the prescribed emission standards.
The High Court will take up Kohli's challenge on November 27, when it is scheduled to hear the matter alongside the related case.