Delhi HC Refuses to Entertain PIL Seeking Limits on Cash Transactions for Online Shopping

The Delhi High Court has recently refused to entertain a public interest litigation (PIL) aiming to limit cash transactions for goods, products, and services acquired through online shopping platforms like Amazon and Flipkart.

The petitioner, Advocate and BJP leader Ashwani Kumar Upadhyay, moved to withdraw the PIL after a division bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Sanjeev Narula indicated their inclination to dismiss the plea.

As the bench was on the verge of reserving the order on merits, Upadhyay requested the withdrawal of the petition, with the liberty to explore other legal remedies available.

During the hearing, Justice Narula also stated that he will impose costs on Upadhyay for filing the petition.

In May, the court had sought the stance of the Union Government and Delhi Government on the matter, yet no formal notice was issued for the plea. The plea aimed to prompt measures for “reducing corruption.”

It also sought to restrict cash transactions for air tickets, rail tickets, electricity bills, and other bills exceeding Rs. 10,000. Upadhyay, in the plea, argued that the prayers presented in the PIL represent a “practical solution” to tackle corruption, generate black money, combat money laundering, address benami transactions, and tackle disproportionate assets.

The plea further stated, “Similarly, no district is free from the clutches of mafias’ viz. land mafia, drug-liquor mafia, mining mafia, transfer-posting mafia, betting mafia, tender mafia, hawala mafia, illegal immigration mafia, conversion mafia, superstition-black magic mafia, and white-collar political mafia, dividing society on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex, and place of birth.”

It added that it is the government’s duty to examine the best practices of other countries ranked among the top 20 in the Corruption Perception Index and adopt them to send a robust message of its commitment to combating corruption and black money.

“Moreover, India cannot move forward without clean-transparent governance, for which a corruption-free society is a fundamental requirement, and that is unattainable without recalling currency above Rs. 100, restricting cash transactions above Rs. 10,000, linking assets above Rs. 50,000 with AADHAAR, and confiscating cent percent black money, disproportionate assets, and benami property, while imposing rigorous life imprisonment on looters,” the plea stated.