Balochistan High Court orders intensified crackdown on illegal rickshaws in Quetta

QUETTA, Oct 12 (APP): The Balochistan High Court (BHC) has directed authorities to expedite operations against illegal auto-rickshaws operating without route permits in Quetta, pursue investigations into seized fake permits, and continue the computerisation of route permit records, while ordering officials to submit a progress report on the measures taken.

The directions were issued by a two-member bench comprising Chief Justice Muhammad Kamran Khan Malakhail and Justice Muhammad Najamuddin Mengal during the hearing of a constitutional petition filed on October 8, 2026.

During the proceedings, Additional Advocate General Zahoor Ahmed Baloch submitted a report to the court with the assistance of the Secretary of the Regional Transport Authority (RTA), Quetta, outlining progress on compliance with the court’s earlier directives.

According to the report, a meeting was held on September 20, 2026, at the office of the Secretary RTA Quetta with representatives of the Rickshaw Union and their legal counsel to discuss issues faced by rickshaw operators. The meeting reviewed several proposals, including the removal of red markings on rickshaws for the issuance of new duplicate permits, the disposal or scrapping of illegally impounded rickshaws through a lawful mechanism instead of auctioning them, and biometric verification of existing permit holders.

The report stated that representatives of the Rickshaw Union and their lawyer agreed with the proposed measures and reached a consensus on resolving the issues through mutual consultation.

The court was further informed that the RTA Quetta, in coordination with the Traffic Police, had conducted operations against illegal and unpermitted rickshaws at various locations across the city between September 12 and October 6, 2026.

During the campaign, 27 rickshaws were impounded for violations of the Motor Vehicle Ordinance, 1965.

Authorities also seized 10 fake rickshaw route permits during different raids. The report noted that such operations were continuing and that the court would be kept informed of further developments.

Regarding reforms in the permit system, the report stated that a total of 9,222 manual route permits had so far been converted into a computerised system as part of efforts to improve transparency and record management.

During the hearing, counsel for the petitioners, Zafar Iqbal Muhammad Hasni and Shah Rasool, informed the court that the meeting with RTA officials had been productive and that several important proposals had been considered. However, they requested that relevant government authorities be directed to accelerate implementation of the proposed measures and submit regular progress reports before the court.

After hearing the arguments, the bench ordered that Constitutional Petition No. 230/2026 be linked with Constitutional Petition No. 1951/2022 for further proceedings in the matter.