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HomeIndiaGovernanceDelhi HC strikes down 59-year-old anti-begging law in win for civil rights

Delhi HC strikes down 59-year-old anti-begging law in win for civil rights

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The court calls the Bombay Prevention of Begging Act, 1959 that criminalises begging in the national capital unconstitutional.

New Delhi: In a major boost for civil rights, the Delhi high court Wednesday declared a 59-year-old anti-begging legislation as unconstitutional.

Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice Hari Shankar struck down the Bombay Prevention of Begging Act, 1959 which criminalises begging in the national capital.

“How can begging be an offence when the government cannot fully provide for the poor?” the bench had asked in earlier hearings.

A full copy of the ruling is yet to be made available by the court.


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The central government had earlier defended the law in court, but the Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi government told the court that a bill had been prepared to repeal the application of the existing law to Delhi. However, the bill has been in cold storage since 2016.

There is no special central or state legislation against begging, but most states in India have adopted the 1959 Act by making some minor changes. The law was applicable to Delhi through a notification of the state government.

The Poor House Court in Kingsway Camp in north Delhi is a special court to prosecute those charged under the begging Act.

The court’s ruling came in a batch of two public interest litigations filed by activists Harsh Mander and Kritika Sawhney in 2009 and 2010.

Under the law, ‘begging’ is pardonable for a first-time offender and is punishable with a jail term of three to ten years for repeat offenders. The law also empowers police to detain not only those deemed beggars but also their ‘dependents’ above the age of 18.


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In 2017, union minister Maneka Gandhi urged the social justice and empowerment ministry to bring in a new law against begging that also includes rehabilitation of minor dependents of beggars.

Apart from ‘soliciting and receiving alms’ the draconian legislation makes ‘having no visible means of subsistence and wandering’ also an offence. Police routinely crack down and detain scores of beggars in public alleys and temple premises under the Act.

Human rights activists had criticised the law and its particular use during the 2010 Commonwealth Games to hide hundreds of beggars in the national capital from the eyes of foreign tourists.

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1 COMMENT

  1. A child was arrested in New York for stealing bread from a vendor on a railway platform. The judge hearing the case fined the City of New York 25 dollars for being unable to provide food to a destitute that a hungry child was compelled to steal it!

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