A Lot Many Accidents Are Occuring Due To LED/Laser/Neon/Flash Lights Used In Vehicles: Himachal Pradesh HC Issues Directions
The Himachal High Court issued directions to the Director General of Police(Transport) and other authorities, to ensure that no transport vehicle shall have a high-power audio system, multiple booster/power amplifiers, speakers and sub-woofers producing loud noise, DJ rotating LED lights, continuously blinking multi-coloured LED lights, laser lights, etc.
The Court directed the Director General of Police and Director (Transport) to ensure that the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act and Rules and Regulations framed thereunder are fully complied with and file status report(s) on or before the next date of hearing.
The Division Bench of Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan and Justice Sushil Kukreja observed “Similarly, a transport vehicle, fitted with high- power audio system, having multiple booster/power amplifiers, speakers and sub-woofers producing loud noise, DJ rotating LED lights, continuously blinking multi-coloured LED lights, laser lights, etc. in the passenger compartment and the driver cabin, cannot be treated as a vehicle, which complies with the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act and the Rules made thereunder, for the purpose of grant of certificate of fitness. Here also, the Director (Transport) is directed to ensure that no fitness certificate is granted in such cases.”
Senior Advocates K.D. Shreedhar and Shreya Chauhan appeared for NHAI, DSGI Balram Sharma for the Union and Sr. Add. AG YW Chauhan and IN Mehta appeared for the State.
The Court heard the matter related to various bottlenecks on the National Highway obstructing the free flow of vehicular traffic. National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) assured the Court that all-out efforts shall be made to ensure free flow traffic by removing all bottlenecks before the next date of hearing.
The Court directed “We deem it appropriate to direct Deputy Commissioner as well as Superintendent of Police, Solan, to render all the necessary assistance to the NHAI so as to enable it to remove all illegal parking and the NHAI shall be at liberty to remove all encroachments from NH land without getting any formal demarcation as it is more than settled that it is for the occupant(s) to prove his lawful possession and not otherwise and more over, these encroachments and illegal parking have come up on the NHAI land, which otherwise has already been demarcated. Ordered accordingly.”
The Court also directed Municipal Commissioner, Solan, to remove all hindrances be it by way of encroachment, idle parking or street vendors squatting on the NH land.
The Court observed that it is common that high-power audio systems producing loud sound with a rating of several thousand watts PMPO impair the hearing of the driver(s) and passengers of the vehicles thereby causing distraction to other drivers and road users. It was observed “Multi-coloured LED/laser/neon lights, booster amplifiers, equalizer, DJ mixer, etc., with illuminated control panels in the driver cabin, has been seen causing glare and reflection of light on the windscreen of the vehicle, endangering the safety of the passengers and other road users as also tampering with the percentage of visual transmission of light of the safety glass of the windscreen, rear window and side windows, by pasting stickers, tint films, etc. upon the safety glass, fixing sliding cloth curtains, etc., in violation of the sub- rule (2) of Rule 100 of the Rules, 1989.”
The Court relied on the decision of S. Rajaseekaran v. Union of India (2018 SC) and Avishek Goenka v. Union of India (2012 SC) and also discussed the provisions under Sections 56(4), 182A(4), 190(2), 190(3) and 206(4) of the Motors Vehicles Act, 1988.
Lastly, the Court directed “Accordingly, the Director General of Police and Director (Transport) are directed to ensure that the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act and Rules and Regulations framed thereunder are fully complied with and file status report(s) on or before the next date of hearing. All the concerned authorities, Traffic Magistrates as also other Magistrates in the State of Himachal Pradesh are also directed to ensure due compliance of this order.”
Accordingly, listed the matter for a further date.
Cause Title: Court On Its Own Motion v. NHAI & Ors.
Appearances:
Respondents: Senior Advocate K. D. Shreedhar, DSGI Balram Sharma, Sr. Addl. A.Gs. Y. W. Chauhan, I. N. Mehta, Addl. A.Gs Ramakant Sharma, Sharmila Patial, Dy.A.G. Raj Negi, Advocates Shreya Chauhan and Kiran Dhiman.