The Supreme Court in the case Vishwa Hindu Parishad Kerala v. State of Kerala observed and has issued the notice on a petition filed by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad wherein seeking permission to operate vehicles offering free transport for Sabarimala pilgrims in Nilakkal to Pampa route.
The court in the case observed and seek responses of the State of Kerala and the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation.
The bench comprising of Justice Surya Kant and Justice KV Viswanathan in the case was hearing the Special Leave Petition filed by the VHP challenging a judgment delivered by the Kerala High Court in April 2023 wherein the court rejected the plea.
The counsel, Senior Advocate V Chitambaresh, appearing for the organisation, told the bench that till the COVID season, vehicles were allowed till Pampa, from where the 6 KM trek to the Sabarimala shrine starts. Thus, the distance between Nilakkal and Pampa is 22 kilometres and only the KSRTC buses are allowed to ply in this route.
Adding to it, the counsel, Senior Advocate V Chitambaresh stated that the VHP offered to do free services and when the bench asked that if the petitioner was asking for a stage carriage permit or a contract carriage permit, Chitambaresh said that the organisation just wanted to offer free services, which the government is not allowing. At present, only the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation is allowed to operate on this route.
It has also been submitted by him that Lakhs and lakhs of devotees are coming there and they are waiting for 28 hours, 30 hours in serpentine queues. Thus, the KSRTC is not running sufficient buses. They are not in good condition too.
The counsel appearing for the petitioner proposed free service from Nilakkal to Pamba and vice versa, by taking 20 contract carriages on lease for free transportation of the pilgrims.
The High Court in the case observed that if the petitioner was allowed to operate special permit vehicles with pick and drop at the start and terminal points, it will virtually become a stage carriage with a corridor restriction, which will violate permit conditions.
