Delhi High Court refuses to stay ban on non-BS-VI vehicles
A bench led by Acting Chief Justice Nitin Wasudeo Sambre declined interim relief regarding the restriction on non-Delhi registered vehicles.
The Delhi High Court on Monday declined to pause a government notification that prevents vehicles registered outside the National Capital Territory and lacking BS-VI emission standards from entering the city between November 1 and January 31. According to reports by Hindustan Times and Business Standard, a bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Nitin Wasudeo Sambre and Justice Sanjay Sharma issued notices to respondents regarding the matter.
The legal challenge was filed by Faridabad-based lawyer Gurmukh Dass Kohli, who is represented by advocate Anurag Saxena. The petition contests a June 23 notification from the Department of Environment and Forests that imposes the three-month restriction on vehicles failing to meet the BS-VI standard.
The petitioner argued that the policy creates differential treatment because pre-BS-VI vehicles registered within Delhi are allowed to operate, while identical models from outside the city are barred. The plea stated that this classification is based on the place of registration rather than actual emissions, which it claimed lacks a connection to pollution control.
The petition further contended that the blanket ban is disproportionate as it functions regardless of daily Air Quality Index readings. It also argued that the restriction is inconsistent with the Graded Response Action Plan issued by the Commission for Air Quality Management in September.
The court has listed the plea for a hearing alongside a related matter on November 27.