The Delhi High Court in the case Petitioner-In-Person v. Saurabh Garg, IAS, Secretary, Department of Social Justice And Empowerment, Governments Of India And Ors observed and has directed the Union Government to file an affidavit showing the current status of the implementation of welfare schemes for the benefit of various de-notified Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes.
The bench headed by Justice Mini Pushkarna in the case observed and has granted four weeks’ time to the Central Government to file the affidavit. In the present case, the court was dealing with the contempt plea moved by Advocate Dinesh P. Rajbhar, wherein it alleged non-compliance of an order passed in a PIL seeking to provide constitutional and legal rights to de-notified, nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes.
The court passed the order dated 22.07.2022, wherein the division bench disposed of the Public Interest Litigation, PIL by one Salek Chand Jain after being satisfied with the steps taken by the Union Government for bringing the de notified Tribes into the mainstream of the country.
The court observed that the Union Government raised the preliminary objection with respect to the maintainability of the contempt petition on the ground that the same was filed by a third person, who was not a party to the disposed of Public Interest Litigation, PIL.
It has also been submitted by the counsel appearing for the petitioner that the contempt plea was maintainable as the directions issued in the PIL were general in nature and thus, he could have filed the plea alleging non-compliance.
The bench in the case noted that the petitioner’s lawyer had filed an RTI application on September 29 last year asking queries from the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment about the schemes and budgetary allocation for the de notified nomadic tribes. was that the Scheme for Economic Therefore, the court stated that the CPIO of the concerned Ministry replied that Empowerment of De-Notified Tribes, SEED was in the implementation stage and the benefits would be given on a first-come-first-serve basis.
The court while considering the facts and circumstances of the case observed and seek responses from the Centre, wherein noting that the reply to the RTI application did not disclose the status and details as regards the implementation of the welfare scheme for the de notified Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes.
Accordingly, the court listed the matter for further consideration on April 15, 2024.
