Date:06/01/2009 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/01/06/stories/2009010659280600.htm

New Delhi

Speed governors case posted for final disposal

J. Venkatesan

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday posted for final disposal a batch of petitions relating to fitting of speed governors on all old commercial vehicles in Karnataka after recording the State’s submission that a notification had been issued withdrawing the earlier direction on speed governors.

The High Court, while making it mandatory for all transport vehicles to have speed governors, had directed the Government to ensure that all old commercial vehicles had the speed-controlling device by September 30, 2008 and not to register new vehicles without speed governors after June 30, 2008.

The State, while implementing the order in respect of new vehicles from July 1, was aggrieved at the order on old vehicles and filed a special leave petition (SLP) against that order.

Other petitioners, the Association of Commercial Vehicle Operators, and the Karnataka and Mysore Rasthe Sthaliya Saraku Saganike Malikara Sangha also sought quashing of this judgment.

On September 30, the apex court extended the time limit till December last.

Even as the matter was pending, the State issued a notification on October 31, 2008 withdrawing its earlier notification on fitment of speed governors.

In view of this, the State filed a fresh application seeking to withdraw its SLP on the ground that the matter had become infructuous.

The notification stated that every day around 20,000 vehicles passed through Karnataka on various highways and fitting of speed governors had not been made compulsory in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Haryana.

Implementing the earlier notification would result in the stopping of about 20,000 vehicles at the Karnataka borders every day and it would lead to massive law and order problem.

When the counsel for the manufacturers of speed governors objected to the October 31 notification, the CJI told the counsel “you challenge that notification. We are recording the State’s submission on fresh notification and posting the matter for final disposal.”