MUMBAI:The Bombay High Court has upheld the Central Railway’s 2018 Shoe Shine Licence Policy, which mandates allocating licences through an open bidding process instead of the earlier practice of granting them to specific co-operative societies.
Dismissing a petition filed by the Bombay Shoe-Shine Workers Co-operative Society, the court said the policy of inviting open tenders ensures transparency, openness and fairness.
A division bench of Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande observed that the new system allows all eligible societies to compete for licences, instead of continuing the earlier practice of allotting them to select co-operative bodies.
The petitioner society, comprising 35 members working at stations including Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), Masjid Bandar and Sandhurst Road, had challenged the policy after Central Railway invited fresh bids in 2022.
Petitioner’s counsel, advocate Jane Cox, argued that the new policy would adversely affect their livelihood and was contrary to the original intent of promoting employment among economically weaker sections, including Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
They also submitted that several members were elderly and would be severely impacted if displaced.
Opposing the plea, the railway administration contended that multiple such societies exist and open bidding allows all eligible groups to participate because the policy’s benefit cannot be limited to certain societies. It further stated that the petitioner society is not barred from competing in the tender process.
Agreeing with the railway’s submissions, the court held that the policy promotes a transparent and inclusive mechanism and dismissed the petition.