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Informist, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024

 

--SC OKs light motor vehicle licence to drive sub-7,500 kg transport vehicle 

 

NEW DELHI – The Supreme Court Wednesday said that a person with a driving licence for a light motor vehicle is allowed to drive a "transport vehicle of light motor vehicle class" with an unladen weight not exceeding 7,500 kg. The top court said none of the parties had produced any data to show that a light motor vehicle licence holder driving a transport vehicle was a significant cause of road accidents in India.

 

The court said its present interpretation of how the licensing regime is to operate for drivers was unlikely to compromise the road safety concerns, and it also effectively addressed the livelihood issues of drivers operating transport vehicles below 7,500 kg. The additional eligibility criteria specified in the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 and its rules generally for driving transport vehicles, would apply only to those intending to operate transport vehicles exceeding 7,500 kg such as medium goods vehicles, medium passenger vehicles, heavy goods vehicles, and heavy passenger vehicles.

 

The court said that for licensing purposes, light motor vehicles and transport vehicles were not entirely separate classes and an overlap existed between the two. The special eligibility requirement will, however, continue apply to e-carts (electronic carts), e-rickshaws (electronic rickshaws) and vehicles carrying hazardous goods, it added.

 

In its 126-page judgement, Justice Hrishikesh Roy said that road safety was a serious public issue globally and 170,000 persons were killed in India due to road accidents, and to say that all was because of light motor vehicle drivers was unsubstantiated. There are reasons such as non-compliance with seat belt rules, use of mobiles, being inebriated and other things, said Justice Roy. Driving needs special skills and attention and a person needs to be free from distraction, he added.

 

The five-judge Constitution Bench led by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud said that pronouncement from the top court will also help in insurance claims made by a light motor vehicle licence holder who was found driving a vehicle weighing less than 7,500 kg. Licensing regime cannot remain static, we hope suitable amendments are made to address the lacunae as it exists, the Bench said. 

 

The Bench, also comprising Justices P.S. Narasimha, Pankaj Mithal and Manoj Misra said it was the driver's skill and adherence to traffic rules that could prevent accidents. Insurance companies cannot take refuge under technicalities to deny compensation to victims of accidents, it added.

 

The case has its genesis from a 2017 decision of the top court's three-judge bench wherein it held that a transport vehicle and omnibus, the gross vehicle weight of either of which does not exceed 7,500 kg, would be a light motor vehicle. This meant that a person holding the licence to drive a light motor vehicle need not have a separate licence for a transport vehicle which weighed less than 7,500 kg in unloaded state.

 

Consequently, several insurance companies challenged the apex court's 2017 decision and said the court was wrong in allowing light motor vehicle licence holders to drive a transport vehicle. Under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, both vehicles were starkly different, said the insurance companies. They further said that the age to acquire a licence for a light motor vehicle was 18 years, whereas for that of a transport vehicle was 20 years. Further, the two types of licences require different types of training to be undertaken by drivers.

 

The dispute is also related to payment of claims by insurance companies in accident cases involving transport vehicles being driven by those possessing licences to drive light motor vehicles. The insurance companies have said that motor accident claims tribunals were passing orders against them to pay claims and disregarding their objections relating to light motor vehicle driving licences. The case was referred to the top court's five-judge Constitution Bench in 2022.

 

The petitioners have argued that if drivers with a light motor vehicle licence are allowed to drive transport vehicles, then they would end up driving vehicles containing people and goods without training. Its implication was that a person with a car driving licence could drive a road roller, endangering many, the petitioners added.

 

Further, the insurance companies pointed out that it was unclear about the nature of insurance policies taken by light motor vehicle licence holders. They asked whether these would cover accidents when they were using their vehicles for transport purposes. 

 

Apart from safety and regulatory issues, the top court's decision will have an impact on the livelihood of many gig workers who drive light motor vehicles for transportation purposes. The apex court had pointed out earlier that "the lakhs of drivers" engaged in driving commercial vehicles based on the 2017 judgement could be "completely put out of their livelihood" if the court ruled otherwise.  End

 

Reported by Surya Tripathi

Edited by Tanima Banerjee

 

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