Kolkata, 26 May (H.S.): Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday shared a detailed post on X on the occasion of International Hawkers Day, expressing solidarity with street vendors, hawkers and small traders from the informal sector. She accused the BJP government in West Bengal of harassing hawkers, evicting them and demolishing their shops after coming to power in the state.
In her post, Mamata Banerjee wrote, “On May 26, International Hawkers Day, I extend my greetings and sympathies to my hardworking hawker brothers and sisters. I am shocked, angry and deeply saddened by the way the BJP government in West Bengal has been torturing hawkers, evicting them and pushing them to the streets without caring about their tears. The oppressors will certainly get an answer. I stood by you earlier, I stand by you now, and I will continue to stand by you.”
She stated that street vendors, hawkers and small informal-sector traders form the backbone of the local economy. According to her, they serve as an important link between large-scale production systems and the daily needs of ordinary people while supplying essential goods at affordable prices.
The Trinamool Congress chief said the informal sector plays a crucial role in employment generation in developing countries, helping millions of people become self-reliant and support their families through hawking and small trade.
Referring to the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, Mamata Banerjee said the law was enacted to protect the livelihood of hawkers while maintaining a balance between the rights of pedestrians, permanent shopkeepers and street vendors.
She further stated that the goal of a well-planned and ideal city should not be to remove hawkers, but to integrate them into the urban system. According to her, properly organised markets with adequate infrastructure for hawkers could strengthen the city’s small-scale economy without disrupting public movement.
In her post, Mamata Banerjee also referred to several landmark judgments of the Supreme Court of India concerning the rights of hawkers. She cited cases such as Bombay Hawkers Union vs Bombay Municipal Corporation (1985), Sodan Singh vs New Delhi Municipal Committee (1989), Genda Ram vs Municipal Corporation of Delhi (2010), and Maharashtra Ekta Hawkers Union vs Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (2013).
She said the Supreme Court had repeatedly upheld the constitutional right of hawkers to earn a livelihood and clarified that arbitrary eviction without surveys or alternative arrangements would amount to a violation of Article 21 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to life and livelihood. She also stressed that issues related to hawkers should be regulated through democratic mechanisms such as Town Vending Committees so that hawkers’ opinions are reflected in urban planning decisions.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey
