Between law and practice: Reflections from the sealing drive across Delhi

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Abstract

This paper provides a brief coverage of the on-going sealing drive in Delhi which massively disrupted the trading activities of small and medium scale businesses across different parts of the capitol city. A sealing drive is the process of removal of unauthorised establishments by (civic) authorities. This paper starts by tracking down the legal history of the controversy, from 1992 to the developments in the case since then. The purpose of this reflective study is to present an overview of the ground situation in Delhi’s ‘sealed markets’ while explaining the legal nuances of the Supreme Court order. A short-hand ethnographic method has been used by authors in primarily documenting the perspective of traders affected by the sealing drive in the Southern parts of Delhi (including Amar Colony and Defence Colony area). Towards the end of the paper, the authors conclude with a brief proposal on legal remedies available to traders (and other stakeholders) affected by the drive.