ORDER M. Katju, J.
1. This is an application praying that the Nagar Nigam, Allahabad be directed to remove the persons who are illegally squatting on/occupying the Bank road for selling vegetables (whether on retail or wholesale basis).
2. Learned counsel for the petitioner has invited our attention to the Division Bench decision of this Court in Sanjay Agarwal v. Nagar Paltka, Allahabad being Writ Petition No. 3119 of 1987 decided on 20.4.1999, copy of which is Annexure-1 to the writ petition. By that judgment, the persons who were squatting illegally on Katra road were directed to shift to some other place. It appears that following the said decision, those persons have now started Illegally squatting on/ occupying the Bank road. This means that such persons who were illegally occupying one place have now started illegally occupying another place. In our opinion, this cannot be permitted. One can occupy public land only with the permission/licence from the authority concerned. We are informed by Sri Q.H. Siddiqui, learned counsel for the Nagar Nigam, Allahabad that the Nagar Nigam, Allahabad has not permitted such persons who are occupying/squatting on the Bank road to do so. We are further informed that this morning, the Nagar Nigam officials came to remove such illegal occupiers/squatters on Bank road, but such officials were not given police help and in fact, the Nagar Nigam officials as well as the petitioner were attacked by the illegal occupiers/squatters on the Bank road.
3. We, therefore, direct the S.S.P. Allahabad the respondent No. 5 to give police help to the Nagar Nigam officials for removing the persons who are illegally occupying/squatting on Bank road.
4. The petitioner has stated that such illegal occupiers/squatters were removed four times earlier, but every time, they came back and squatted on the Bank road again. The district administration should see to it that this is not repeated. We make it clear that persons who wish to sell vegetables, grain and/or other items (whether in wholesale or retail) cannot occupy public land for doing so without permission or licence of the authority concerned. They may make applications to the Nagar Nigam or the other concerned authority for this purpose and it is for the Nagar Nigam or such authority, at its discretion, to grant permission at a suitable place for such persons keeping in view various considerations including the free flow of traffic, requirements of the people in the locality etc, and on payment of tehbazari charges as fixed by the said authority. On the application of such persons, the Nagar Nigam, Allahabad or the concerned authority shall pass appropriate orders keeping in mind the considerations referred to above.