The Delhi High Court has upheld a policy by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) that mandates obtaining licenses for photographers working at ASI-protected monuments.
The court said that this policy was established “in larger public interest” to regulate the quality and conduct of photographers for the benefit of visitors and tourists.
A bench of Justices Manmohan and Mini Pushkarna dismissed a plea filed by individuals who had worked as photographers at ASI-protected monuments since 2012.
They were concerned that they were not covered by Clause 2.7 of the amended policy because they did not hold licenses issued by the government agency before 2012.
Consequently, they were required to take written tests and vivas to obtain new licenses as photographers.
The policy, titled “The Policy for Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) Photographers to perform within Centrally Protected Monuments”, was notified by the ASI on May 24, 2017.
Under this policy, licenses previously granted by ASI to photographers before 2012 were revalidated, provided the photographers underwent refresher courses and tests conducted by the agency.
The bench upheld the policy, stating that ASI’s classification and categorisation were reasonable and fair.
The court recognised a distinction between photographers with licenses issued before 2012 and those seeking licenses for the first time after 2012.
It rejected the petitioners’ claims that their rights under Article 19(1)(g) of the Indian Constitution were jeopardised, saying that obtaining a license in line with ASI’s due selection procedure did not violate their constitutional rights.
Moreover, the court rejected the petitioners’ assertion that the policy was applied retrospectively.
It clarified that the policy was being implemented prospectively and that individuals seeking to work as photographers at ASI-protected monuments were required to obtain licenses as per the current policy, regardless of their previous work without licenses.
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