Ahmedabad: In a big relief to vehicle owners in Gujarat, the High Court here today in an important judgement said that the malls and other private commercial establishments could not levy parking charges from common public.

Pronouncing its order on the bunch of appeals filed by malls and commercial establishments the division bench of Acting Chief Justice Anant S Dave and Justice Biren Vaishnav today delivered this verdict . The court had completed the hearing in February this year and reserved its order.

The appeals clubbed together had challenged the police order barring them from levying parking fees and the single bench verdict of October last year which had barred the malls etc from levying any parking charges from vehicle owners in the first hour and not to take such charges in excess of Rs 20 to 30.

The malls had contended that to bear the maintenance cost of the parking lots, it needed to collect parking charges. Their counsel had argued that even the Municipal body like AMC and the government collect parking charges from paid public parking spaces.

The court in its order today categorically said that the malls etc could not levy parking charges and they should bear the related cost themselves.