# 5 S.C.R. 444 S. RAJASEEKARAN v. UNION OF INDIA & ORS - **Citation:** [2014] 5 S.C.R. 444 - **Court:** Supreme Court of India - **Decided:** 2014-04-22 - **Bench:** P. Sathasivam Cji, RANJAN GOGOi, N.V. Ramana - **Source:** https://unisonlegal.in/judgment/supreme-court-of-india/5-s-c-r-444-s-rajaseekaran-v-union-of-india-ors-30092 - **Pages:** 49 ## Headnote Motor Vehicles Act, 1988: Road accidents - Large number of accidents occur every day on Indian Roads causing loss of human lives besides loss of limbs and other injuries resulting in human tragedies - Writ petitioner seeking court's intervention primarily in the 0 matter of implementation of prevailing laws in the right earnest and need for change in such laws and upgradation thereof and directions for upliftment of the existing infrastructure and facilities with regard to post-accident care and management to minimize loss of life and physical injuries to victims of road E accidents - Held: The four Working Groups set up by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways made recommendations on short terrn and long term measures to curb road ac9idents in the country i.e. enforcement of the existing laws, regulations and norms; availability of safe roads worthy of traffic as per the resources available with Central and F State Governments; education on road safety and timely medical attention - All existing laws and norms including the provision of Motor Vehicles Act, therefore require to be implemented in the right earnest and with all vigours by the authorities - Committee constituted to undertake the process G of monitoring measures undertaken by the Central Government and State Governments - All State Governments as well as different Ministries/Departments/Wings of the Central Government to submit their report to the Committee indicating the state of implementation and enforcement of all H 444 S. RAJASEEKARAN v. UNION OF INDIA 445 laws pertaining to licensinf)_; certification of fitness of vehicles; A limits ·of 'fise ·of vehicles i.e. passenger carrying capacity, ·weight carrying capacity etc.; use of road safety devices; adherence to norms including user of roads, and deployment of adequate manpower for enforcement of the existing . provisions of law - The Union Government as well as the State B Government to also indicate their views on the necessity of further change in the law, if any - The Committee directed to. submit its report to the Court within three months after receipt of report from the Union/State Governments expressing its views on the deficiencies and the defaults on the part of any c of the stakeholders, as may be found. - In the instant writ petition filed under Article 32 of the Constitution, the grievance of the petitioner was. that large number of accidents occur every day on Indian Roads causing)oss of human lives besides loss of limbs D and other injuries resulting in human tragedies; that the road traffic accidents have the potential of being one of the largest challenges to orderly human existence necessitating immediate intervef,tion. The petitioner has .1 sought court's intervention primarily in the matter of E implementation of prevailing laws in the right earnest and need for changes in such laws and upgradation thereof. The petitioner has also sought directions for upliftment of the existing' infrastructure and facilities with regard to post-accident care and management to minimize loss of F life and physical ~r,ies to victims of road accidents. Posting the ,matter fo~ further consideration, the Court HELD: 1. Indian roads have proved to be giant killers G demanding immediate attention and remedial action. Sucti attention and· necessary intervention, in the first instance, is required to be made by the concerned' governmental agencies. While there is no reason for any skepticism over the abundant concern shown by all H 446 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2014] 5 S.C.R. A concerned to the issues highlighted and also the attempted solutions both in the field of law enforcement as well as amendments· in the law, besides limited experiments in providing better after-trauma care, for reasons that need not detain the court, the results so far B have not been very encouraging. The accident and casualty graphs continue to run on an even keel over the last several years. [Para 19] [480-A-C] 2. An accident is an in ## Text _Characters 0–39,949 of 82,851. This is a partial read: ask again with offset=39949 for what follows._ A B c [2014) 5 S.C.R. 444 S. RAJASEEKARAN v. UNION OF INDIA & ORS. (Writ Petition (Civil) No. 295 of 2012) APRIL 22, 2014 [P. SATHASIVAM CJI., RANJAN GOGOi AND N.V. RAMANA, JJ.) Motor Vehicles Act, 1988: Road accidents - Large number of accidents occur every day on Indian Roads causing loss of human lives besides loss of limbs and other injuries resulting in human tragedies - Writ petitioner seeking court's intervention primarily in the 0 matter of implementation of prevailing laws in the right earnest and need for change in such laws and upgradation thereof and directions for upliftment of the existing infrastructure and facilities with regard to post-accident care and management to minimize loss of life and physical injuries to victims of road E accidents - Held: The four Working Groups set up by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways made recommendations on short terrn and long term measures to curb road ac9idents in the country i.e. enforcement of the existing laws, regulations and norms; availability of safe roads worthy of traffic as per the resources available with Central and F State Governments; education on road safety and timely medical attention - All existing laws and norms including the provision of Motor Vehicles Act, therefore require to be implemented in the right earnest and with all vigours by the authorities - Committee constituted to undertake the process G of monitoring measures undertaken by the Central Government and State Governments - All State Governments as well as different Ministries/Departments/Wings of the Central Government to submit their report to the Committee indicating the state of implementation and enforcement of all H 444 S. RAJASEEKARAN v. UNION OF INDIA 445 laws pertaining to licensinf)_; certification of fitness of vehicles; A limits ·of 'fise ·of vehicles i.e. passenger carrying capacity, ·weight carrying capacity etc.; use of road safety devices; adherence to norms including user of roads, and deployment of adequate manpower for enforcement of the existing . provisions of law - The Union Government as well as the State B Government to also indicate their views on the necessity of further change in the law, if any - The Committee directed to. submit its report to the Court within three months after receipt of report from the Union/State Governments expressing its views on the deficiencies and the defaults on the part of any c of the stakeholders, as may be found. - In the instant writ petition filed under Article 32 of the Constitution, the grievance of the petitioner was. that large number of accidents occur every day on Indian Roads causing)oss of human lives besides loss of limbs D and other injuries resulting in human tragedies; that the road traffic accidents have the potential of being one of the largest challenges to orderly human existence necessitating immediate intervef,tion. The petitioner has .1 sought court's intervention primarily in the matter of E implementation of prevailing laws in the right earnest and need for changes in such laws and upgradation thereof. The petitioner has also sought directions for upliftment of the existing' infrastructure and facilities with regard to post-accident care and management to minimize loss of F life and physical ~r,ies to victims of road accidents. Posting the ,matter fo~ further consideration, the Court HELD: 1. Indian roads have proved to be giant killers G demanding immediate attention and remedial action. Sucti attention and· necessary intervention, in the first instance, is required to be made by the concerned' governmental agencies. While there is no reason for any skepticism over the abundant concern shown by all H 446 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2014] 5 S.C.R. A concerned to the issues highlighted and also the attempted solutions both in the field of law enforcement as well as amendments· in the law, besides limited experiments in providing better after-trauma care, for reasons that need not detain the court, the results so far B have not been very encouraging. The accident and casualty graphs continue to run on an even keel over the last several years. [Para 19] [480-A-C] 2. An accident is an incident that happens unexpectedly and unintentionally. It is occasioned either C by human failure or human negligence. Viewed from that perspective and also thorough hindsight every road accident is an avoidable happening. The history of humankind has been one of conquests over the inevitable. The resignation to fate has never been the D accepted philosophy of human life. Challenges have to be met to make human life more meaningful. This is how the constitutional philosophy behind Article 21 has been evolved by the Indian courts over a long period of time. There are the reports of four Working Groups set up by E the first respondent to submit recommendations and suggestions on short term and long term measures to curb road accidents in the country. The said four Working Groups were required to go into four 'Es' of road safety, namely, Engineering, Enforcement, Education and F Emergency Care. [Paras 4, 20] (457-D-E; 480-D-E] 2.1.1. ENFORCEMENT of the existing laws, regulations and norms having a bearing on road safety can be conveniently sub-divided into different categories like- licensing; certification of fitness of vehicles; limits G of use of vehicles i.e. passenger carrying capacity, weight carrying capacity etc.; use of road safety devices; adherence to norms including user of roads, and; deployment of adequate manpower for enforcement of the existing provisions of law.The provisions of the law H i.e. Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 governing the aforesaid S. RAJASEEKARAN v. UNION OF INDIA 447 features of the matter can now be taken note of. A. Licensing Section 3 of the Mot.or· Ve_hicles Act, 1988 states that no person shall driv~ a motor vehicle in a public place without holding a valid driving license. As A per the mandate of Section 6, a p~son cannot hold more than one such license. Further, Section. 4 sets the age 8 limits for driving of motor vehicles: 18 years for cars, 16 years for motorcycles, and 20 years for transport vehicles. Section 5 prohibits the owner to permit any person to drive the vehicle without satisfying Sections 3 & 4. If an owner permits any person to drive the vehicle C without a driving licence, the owner is liable for imprisonment upto 3 months or fine upto Rs. 1,000 or both, under Section 180.Under Section 19, the licensing authority may disqualify a person from holding a driving license for certain reasons, such as if the person (i) is a D habitual criminal or habitual drunkard, (ii) is a habitual addict to any narcotic drug or psychotropic substance within the meaning of the NDPS Act, 1985, (iii) is using or has used a motor vehicle in the commission of a cognizable offence, (iv) has by his previous conduct as driver of a motor vehicle shown that his driving is likely to be attended with danger to the public, (v) has. committed any such act which is likely to cause nuisance or danger to the public, etc. The Court may also disqualify a person from holding a driving license, apart from imposing any other punishment. In the following cases, disqualification by the Court is mandatory under Section 20(2): not stopping the vehicle when required to do so E F by any Police Officer (not below the rank of Police SubInspector in uniform) if the vehicle is involved in a road G accident (Section 132); not shifUng the victim of the accident in which his or her vehicle is involved to the nearest hospital/ medical practitioner (Section 134); not •.giving, on demand by a Police Officer, any information ·.required by him (Section 134); not reporting the H 448 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2014] 5 S.C.R. A occurrence of accident to insurer (Section 134); driving by a drunken person or by a person under the influence of drugs (Section 185); driving dangerously (Section 184); racing and trials of speed (Section 189); using a vehicle without registration (Section 192) [Paras 22 to 24) B [481-B-H; 482-A-H; 483-A] B. Ve11icular Fitness Under Section 39, a person cannot drive a motor vehicle or cause or permit his vehicle to be driven without proper registration and display of the registration mark. If a vehicle is not in a fit C condition to be used on the public road or is being used for hire without valid permit, the appropriate authority under Section 53 can suspend the registration certificate. Using a .vehicle without registration can result in fine, the minimum amount of which is Rs. 2,000 and maximum is D Rs. s;ooo, under Section 192. For a subsequent offence, the maximum amount of fine may extend to Rs. 10,000, subject to a minimum of Rs. 5,000. The punishment is nc · applicable for vehicles used in an em~rgency for the conveyance of persons suffering from sickness or E injuries or for the transportation of food or material to relieve distress or of medical supplies for a like purpose, per sub-Section (2). A vehicle cannot be used on the road without proper insurance certificate, as under Section 146. The owner is responsible for obtaining insurance. F Driving an uninsured vehicle can result in punishment in imprisonment upto 3 months or fine upto Rs. 1000/- or both, under Section 196. In cases of vehicles involved in road accidents, the driver or owner must r.eport such involvement to the concerned police officer. Failure to do G so would attract punishment under Section. 187, viz. imprisonment upto 3 months or fine upto Rs. 500, or both (in addition to the punishment for the accident). For the subsequent offence under this section, the imprisonment can be upto 6 months and fine amount upto Rs. 1,000. H Moreover, such a vehicle has to be inspected by the / S. RAJASEEKARAN v. UNION OF INDIA 449 · authorized officer of the Motor Vehicles Department A (Section 136). Chapter V of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 contains exhaustive provisions on the construction, maintenance and equipment of motor vehicles, dealing the dimensions of the vehicle, tyres, brakes, steering gears, safety glass, windscreen wipers, B emission standards, noise reduction measures, and speed governors. The Rules also provide for the installation of devices such as helmets, safety belts, padded dashboards etc. for the safety of drivers, passengers and road users. Violation of the standards c prescribed in relation to road safety, control of noise and air pollution is fine amount upto Rs.1,000/- for the first offence and Rs. 2,000/- for the subsequent offence, under Section 190 of the MV Act. [Para 25] [483-B-H; 484-A-D] C. Use of Roads The MV Act ·contains several D provisions regulating the use of roads by motor vehicles. Section 119 mandates every driver to drive the vehicle in conformity with traffic signs and prescribed driving regulations and to comply with all the d!rections given to him by any Police Officer engaged in the regulation of E traffic. Under Section 121, the driver must signal his intention to stop or·take a left or right turn. Leaving a vehicle at rest on any public place in such a way as to cause or likely to ·cause danger, obstruction or undue inconvenience to other road users is an offence under F Sectioh 122. Such vehicles may be towed away by Police and the owner may be charged for towing in addition to the penalty for offence. A vehicle may also be towed away by the police (in uniform) if it is left attended in a public place for more than 10 hours, or parked at a 'No Parking G Zone', or parked in a manner that creates a traffic hazard (Section 127). Carrying more than one pillion rider on a two-wheeler is an offence under Section 128. Wearing a helmet of ISi standard, while riding a motor cycle in a public place, is mandatory under Section 129. Under H 450 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2014] 5 S.C.R. A Section 183, if a driver of a motor vehicle contravenes the speed limit, he/she shall be punishable with fine upto Rs. 4001- for the first offence and Rs. 500/- for the subsequent offence, and if the owner causes the driver to contravene the speed limit, he/she shall be punishable with fine upto s Rs. 300/- for the first offence and Rs. 500/- for subsequent offence. Under Section 184, whoever drives a motor vehicle at a speed or in a manner which is dangerous to the public, having regard to all the circumstances of the case including nature, condition and use of the place c where the vehicle is driven and the amount of traffic which actually is at the time or which might reasonably be expected to be in the 'place, shall be punishable for the first offence with imprisonment for a term which may e~end to ~ix :months, or with fine which may extend to I 0 one thousand rupees. In case of repeated offence committed within three years of the first offence, he may be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years or with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees or with both. The driver can be arrested on the spot: Taking part in a race or trial of speed of any E kind without the Government's written permission is punishable under Section 189, with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month or with a fine upto Rs 500 or with both. Under Section 185, punishment for drunken driving is imprisonment upto 2 years or fine upto F Rs. 3,000/- or both, and the driver can be arrested on the spot. Further, Section 186 makes a person who is mentally or physically unfit to drive, punishable for the first offence of driving in such a situation with fine upto Rs. 200/- and Rs. 500/- for subsequent offence. Driving a G vehicle exceeding permissible weight can result in a punishment of Rs. 2,000/- and an additional amount of Rs. 1,000/- per ton of excess load together with the liability to pay charges of off-loading the excess load, per Section 194. Using vehicla in contravention of permit condition H can result in fine upto Rs. 5,000/- but not less than Rs. S. RAJASEEKARAN v. UNION OF INDIA 451 2,000/- for the first offence and imprisonment upto 1 year A but not less than 3 months or with fine amount upto Rs. 10,000/- but not less than Rs. 5,000/- or both for the subsequent offence (Section 192(a)). [Para 26] [484-D-H; 485-A-H; 486-A-C] 2.1.2. While improvements in different spheres of law B are imminent with passage of time, any change of law has to be preceded by serious debate and consideration of a wide variety of factors all of whic~ takes time. The legislative procedure is also time consuming. In fact several amendments in the Motor Vehicles Act are under C consideration. While such changes or amendments can be brought in only upon completion of the necessary exercise, the enforcement of the existing laws would stand on an entirely different footing. Strict and faithful enforcement of all existing laws and norms must be D insisted upon not only as an absolute principle of law but also for the huge beneficial effects thereof. Out of-the total road network in the country which is about 47 lakhs kilometers in length, national highways account for only 70,934 kilometers only. It is over these national highways that the executive power of the Union extends whereas E in respect of the State highways and other State roads the Executive power of the State runs. That apart, roads, traffic thereon and vehicles other than those mechanically driven are covered by relevant entries in List II of the Seventh Schedule giving jurisdiction to the States both in matters of legislation and exercise of executive power. None of the States are parties to the instant writ petition. Observance and implementation of F the directions to be issued by this Court in exercise of power under Article 142 of the Constitution would require G a continuing scrutiny and monitoring of such implementation and make the States accountable for any . inaction or lapse in this regard~ All the States are therefore, to be impleaded as party respondents. The ·Registry is directed to issue notice to them. The H 452 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2014] 5 S.C.R. A Government of each State is directed to effectively implement and enforce all the provisions of the Act in respect of which the States have the authority and obligation to so act under the Constitution in addition to the tasks specificall'y alluded to in the subsequent 8 paragraphs of the present order. [Para 27] [486-C-G; 487A-C] 2.2. Engineering In so far Engineering is concerned, the concerned departments in the Central Government as well as the State Governments must make road safety an C integral part of road design at the planning stage and conduct regular road safety audit of selected stretches of expressways, national highways, state highways and other state roads to identify what can be reasonably termed as 'black spots' i.e. problem spots where a large o number of accidents occur. Regular maintenance of all fiighways and roads both by the Central and the State Governments, in order to make the same traffic worthy, is the minimum that the citizens of this country can expect and are entitled to. It is the duty of the Central and the State E Governments to ensure the availability of safe roads worthy of traffic as per the resources available with the Central and the State Governments. [Para 28] [487-D-G] 2.3. Education The importance of education on road safety cannot be gainsaid. Such consciousness needs F to be developed amongst all citizens and should be inculcated from a young age. The importance of informing and educating the citizens of the virtues of road safety lies in the fact that, in the last resort, it is such realization alone that can lead to better and safer use of G roads and vehicles. Serious consideration on this aspect of road safety has been expended by the Union Government. The Union Government is directed to continue to expend its efforts and all such measures shall also be implementecM:>y the State Governments. [Para 29] H [487-H; 488-A-C] S. RAJASEEKARAN v. UNION OF INDIA 453 2.4.· Emergency So far Emergency is concerned, A there is perhaps no denial of the fact that many deaths and loss of limbs and serious disfiguration of victims can B be saved by timely medical attention. Lack of adequate number of good samaritans; squabbles between police stations and administrative authorities over jurisdiction; lack of quick response in removing the victims to hospitals and centres of medical care due to lack of necessary infrastructure like ambulances; absence of adequate and well spread out number of hospitals and medical centrE!s; the poor condition and lack of adequate c infrastructure in government run hospitals and health centres and the prohibitive costs of health care facilities in the more advanced centres of medical care besides insistence of large deposit of money by such advanced health care centres in the private sectors are some of the 0 problems that have seriously plagued post trauma/ accident care in the country .. Limited attempts have been made on experimental basis and that too on national highways alone to provide better amenities and also to take care of the fund requirements for the first 48 hours following the accident. The experiment needs to be extended by the Central Government to more stretches E of the National Highways besides introduction and implementation of such measures by the States in the roads under their control and jurisdiction. [Para 30] [488D-H] 3. All existing laws and norms including the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, as in force, are required to be implemented in the right earnest and with F all vigour by the authorities of the Union and the State G Governments who are responsible for such implementation. All such changes or amendments which are presently under legislative consideration should be expedited and measures as may be considered necessary by legislature in its collective wisdom will be H 454 . SUPREME COURT REPORTS {2014] 5 S.C.R. A brought in the statute book in du& course. At the same time, what has been admitted to be necessary and, therefore, has been initiated by the Central Government in so far as engineering and road education is col'lcerned shall be implemented and directions to so act may be B construed to have been issued by this Court by the present order. [Para 31] [489-A-D] 4.1. To ensure the success of the process undertaken, constant supervision of this Court of the measures undertaken by the Central Government and the State C Governments and the extent of affirmative action on part of the Union and the States will have to be measured and monitored by the Court from time to time. A Committee is constituted to undertake the process of monitoring on behalf of the Court. All State Governments as well as D different Ministries/Departments/Wings of the Central Government who are currently looking after the lllUltidimensional issues pertaining to road safety will submit their first report to the Committee within three months from today indicating the state of implementation and E enforcement of all laws pertaining to (i) licensing; (ii) certification of fitness of vehicles; (iii) limits of use of vehicles Le. passenger carrying capacity, weight carrying capacity etc.; (iv) use of road safety devices; (v) adherence to norms including user of roads, and (vi) deployment of F adequate manpower for enforcement of the existing provisions of law. The Union Government as well as the State Government shall also indicate their views on the necessity of further change in the law, if any. The Committee shall undertake a detailed scrutiny and G examination of the Report(s) that may be submitted and the views of the Central and State Governments with regard to necessity of further legislation or changes in the existing laws. The Committee will submit its report to this Court within three months after receipt of report from the H Union and the State Governments indicating and S. RAJASEEKARAN v. UNION OF INDIA 455 expressing its views on each of the matters referred to in A the present order including the deficiencies and· the I defaults on the part of any of the stakeholders, as may be found. [Paras 32, 33] [489-F-G; 490-G-H; 491-A-C, E.G] . CIVIL ORIGINAL JURISDICTION : Writ Peition (Civil) No. 295 of 2012. Under Article 32 of the Constitution of India. Krishna Kumar, B. Vinodh Kanna, Bhalla P.K. for the B Petitioner. C Sidharth Luthra, ASG, R.R. Rajesh, Shadman Ali, D.S. Mahra for the Respondents. The Judgment of the Court was delivered by RANJAN GOGOi, J. 1. The petitioner is a leading orthopaedic surgeon of the country and the Chairman and Head D of- the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery in the Ganga Hospital at Coimbatore. He was/is also the President of the Indian Orthopaedic Association, the largest pr