Madhya Pradesh HC Says Removing Street Vendors Not Solution, Calls for Structured Plan

The bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, hearing a petition on the removal of street vendors from public spaces, warned that indiscriminate eviction is not a viable remedy. The court stressed that any action must balance vendors' livelihoods with urban planning, sanitation and traffic management, and therefore directed the Madhya Pradesh Bar Association to submit a detailed proposal outlining a structured plan. The Bar Association has been given a specific timeframe to file its recommendations, after which the court will review the inputs before issuing any eviction orders. Legal analysts note that this approach reflects a broader judicial trend of involving professional bodies in policy formulation, especially on issues affecting the informal economy. The ruling arrives as municipal authorities in Bhopal and other cities intensify efforts to clear sidewalks, sparking a debate between public order concerns and the rights of street vendors.