Kerala HC dismisses PIL challenging free bus travel scheme for women, transgender persons

Kochi (PTI): The Kerala High Court on Monday dismissed a PIL challenging the UDF government's Priyadarshini Scheme, which offers free travel for women and transgender persons on ordinary KSRTC buses.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Syam Kumar V M held that the scheme was a policy decision of the government aimed at benefiting working-class women and found no grounds for interference.

The Public Interest Litigation was filed by Muhammed Firdouz, who described himself as a public-spirited citizen and taxpayer.

In his petition, Firdouz contended that the scheme was discriminatory and violated Articles 14 and 15 of the Constitution, as it provided free bus travel to women and transgender persons without any income ceiling, residency requirement or identified disadvantage that it sought to address.

The petitioner also claimed that the scheme would impose a burden on the public exchequer of around Rs 2 crore per day, amounting to nearly Rs 800 crore annually.

The PIL questioned the manner in which the policy was approved and the speed with which it was implemented.

Opposing the plea, the state government submitted that similar schemes were already being implemented in several states, such as, Delhi, Punjab, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and West Bengal.

After hearing both sides, the court observed that there was nothing in the scheme contrary to any statutory provision and dismissed the petition.

The Priyadarshini Scheme was one of the five major guarantees promised by the UDF during the Assembly election campaign.

After assuming office, the UDF government implemented the scheme, providing free travel for women and transgender persons on ordinary services operated by the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation.