Cops can’t force eateries to close at night: Petition
TIMES NEWS NETWORK 21.03.2018
Chennai: Questioning the authority of the police to compel hotels and eateries to shut down by 10 pm when there is no such restriction under the Tamil Nadu Catering Establishment Act or the Tamil Nadu Shops and Establishment Act, an advocate has approached the Madras high court seeking to restrain the police department from interfering with hotel timings.
When the plea came up for hearing on Tuesday, the first bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice Abdul Quddhose directed the government pleader to get instructions from the authorities concerned and posted the PIL to March 23 for further hearing.
According to advocate R Ganesh Prabhu, in 2015 when some of his friends visited Chennai and were about to enter a hotel near Mambalam to eat, they were informed by the hotel owner that it was already past 10pm and that they cannot serve food since the local police have strictly directed them not to keep the shop open after 10pm.
After the incident, Prabhu made an RTI application to the police department asking them under which Act and provision police authorities were compelling hotels to down shutters by 10pm. The public information officer of the department replied saying the information sought by the petitioner was not pertaining to his department.
Subsequently, on September 19, 2015 he sent a legal notice to the DGP on the issue. But so far the petitioner has not received any reply to the notice.
Relying on two government orders dated March 22, 2017 and March 23, 2016 which permitted all shops and establishments to remain open 24x7 all 365 days, Prabhu said the actions of the police were in total violation of the orders.
He further pointed out that the term ‘day’ was defined in the Acts as a period of 24 hours beginning at midnight. Therefore, all the eateries registered under such Acts were entitled to run the shop even after 10pm.
Claiming that in the absence of any particular law restricting the timing of hotels, the police cannot suo motu issue such prohibitory orders. “Even the Chennai City Police Act, 1888 mandates police to issue only NOC to such shops and does not give powers to restrict timing,” the petitioner said.
TIMES NEWS NETWORK 21.03.2018
Chennai: Questioning the authority of the police to compel hotels and eateries to shut down by 10 pm when there is no such restriction under the Tamil Nadu Catering Establishment Act or the Tamil Nadu Shops and Establishment Act, an advocate has approached the Madras high court seeking to restrain the police department from interfering with hotel timings.
When the plea came up for hearing on Tuesday, the first bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice Abdul Quddhose directed the government pleader to get instructions from the authorities concerned and posted the PIL to March 23 for further hearing.
According to advocate R Ganesh Prabhu, in 2015 when some of his friends visited Chennai and were about to enter a hotel near Mambalam to eat, they were informed by the hotel owner that it was already past 10pm and that they cannot serve food since the local police have strictly directed them not to keep the shop open after 10pm.
After the incident, Prabhu made an RTI application to the police department asking them under which Act and provision police authorities were compelling hotels to down shutters by 10pm. The public information officer of the department replied saying the information sought by the petitioner was not pertaining to his department.
Subsequently, on September 19, 2015 he sent a legal notice to the DGP on the issue. But so far the petitioner has not received any reply to the notice.
Relying on two government orders dated March 22, 2017 and March 23, 2016 which permitted all shops and establishments to remain open 24x7 all 365 days, Prabhu said the actions of the police were in total violation of the orders.
He further pointed out that the term ‘day’ was defined in the Acts as a period of 24 hours beginning at midnight. Therefore, all the eateries registered under such Acts were entitled to run the shop even after 10pm.
Claiming that in the absence of any particular law restricting the timing of hotels, the police cannot suo motu issue such prohibitory orders. “Even the Chennai City Police Act, 1888 mandates police to issue only NOC to such shops and does not give powers to restrict timing,” the petitioner said.
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