Delhi HC seeks responses from govt, gig platforms as PIL alleges ‘unchecked' rule violations by delivery agents
The Delhi government informed a bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela that it has a policy in place, the Delhi Motor Vehicle Aggregator and Delivery Service Provider Scheme, which was notified in November 2023.
The court, however, issued notices to all the respondents, which include Amazon Seller Services, Flipkart, Domino's, McDonald's, Zepto, BigBasket, Porter, Swiggy, Zomato, and Urban Company, as well as the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Delhi's transport department, and Delhi Police, directing them to file their responses in four weeks.
The bench instructed the Delhi government to bring its 2023 policy on the court's record and directed all respondents to elaborate action taken pursuant to the policy.
The petitioner, Shashank Shri Tripathi, an advocate practising in the Supreme Court, objected to the e-commerce platforms employing personnel who are 'routinely using two-wheeled vehicles to transport oversized, bulky and excessively heavy items including industrial toolkits, foldable furniture, and commercial-sized delivery boxes'.
Pointing out that the loads often exceed the permissible dimensions and weight limits under Indian traffic regulations, the petitioner has submitted that 'the delivery ecosystem in urban India cannot be allowed to evolve in a regulatory vacuum that endangers the lives of the delivery workers, commuters and pedestrians alike'.
The PIL petition seeks a court direction for the government authorities to frame and implement binding regulatory guidelines governing delivery operations in the gig economy and to direct e-commerce platforms to comply with the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act.
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