The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) evicted five street vendors from Church Street on 18 June 2025, after claiming that hawking wasn’t permitted in the area yet. The move also came after Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on 24 May announced that only 27,665 street vendors in Bengaluru will be officially recognised by the state government. These numbers were based on a survey conducted by BBMP in late 2024 to designate vending zones and regulate street vending operations.
Both these incidents outraged Bengaluru’s street vendors who claimed that the survey left thousands of vendors off the official list. Moreover, the forced evictions without any prior notice rendered their sole source of income illegal overnight. In a statement issued to the media on 22 June 2025, the Karnataka Progressive Street Vendors Association argued that PM-Swanidhi loans (a government scheme that provides loans to street vendors in India, helping them with their businesses after the Covid-19 pandemic) were given to over 70,000 street vendors in the city. “Then how is it possible that the survey identified only over 20,000 vendors?,” the press release said.
This is not the first time street vendors are facing evictions in the city. Naveen Gowda, a street vendor, told LCW that they are often harassed by police marshals. “People in middle and upper class neighbourhoods click our pictures and share them on their WhatsApp groups. Then the BBMP and police officials come and attack us,” he says. In March 2024, BBMP evicted over 40 street vendors in and around Jayanagar, alleging that they had set up shops in a place where encroachments were cleared in November 2023. A similar incident was recorded in November 2023.
Under the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, street vendors cannot be evicted or relocated unless vending zones have been properly demarcated and a survey has been completed to identify and issue certificates of vending to eligible vendors. While the survey was completed this year, BBMP Special Commissioner Vikas Suralkar Kishore told LCW that there hasn’t been much progress on designating vending zones in the city.
“The term of the existing Town Vending Committee has expired. Only after elections for a new committee are conducted will the notification demarcating exact vending and no-vending zones be issued,” Kishore told LCW. The election process will begin once identity cards are done being issued to all street vendors identified in the survey, Kishore said.
To protest against these evictions and exclusion of vendors from BBMP’s survey, over 500 street vendors from across Bengaluru held a day-long protest at Freedom Park on 24 June 2025. They warned of intensifying the protest unless the DCM withdraws his statement and BBMP announces a no-eviction policy. Acknowledging the aforementioned concerns about exclusion, Kishore told LCW, “A meeting will soon be held with the BBMP Chief Commissioner to address this and further directions will be given.”
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Demand for better access to common land/resources
Complaint against procedural violations
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Demand for a zero eviction policy, basic infrastructure in vending areas, clear demarcation of vending zones, inclusion of vendors who haven't received new ID cards yet after the BBMP vendor survey.
Region Classification
Urban
Type of Land
Common
Non-Forest (Other than Grazing Land)
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Commercial
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
Source/Reference
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
Type of investment:
Year of Estimation
Has the Conflict Ended?
No
When did it end?
Why did the conflict end?
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
No
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Forced evictions/dispossession of land
Non-consultation with stakeholders
Legal Status:
Out of Court
Status of Case In Court
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
No
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
Case Number
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
Reported Details of the Violation:
Date of Violation
Location of Violation
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), Bangalore police
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
None
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
Yes
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
None
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
Beedhi Vyaparigala Okkuta (a street vendors federation), All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU) Karnataka, Karnataka Progressive Street Vendors’ Association
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
