C. A. XAVIER Vs. GOVERNMENT OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The captioned Public Interest Litigations are materially connected, in respect of the non implementation of the provisions of the Kerala Road Safety Authority Act, 2007 (hereinafter called 'the Road Safety Act, 2007') and seeking other consequential reliefs. Therefore, we have heard them together and propose to pass this common judgment.

(2.) Since the reliefs sought for in the writ petitions are slightly different from each other, we propose to narrate a short statement of facts of each of the writ petitions. The counter affidavit filed by the State Government in W.P.(C) No. 37880 of 2017 is adopted by the State Government in some of the writ petitions, and the counter affidavits filed by the State as well as the other respondents would be referred to appropriately.

(3.) The petitioner is the then President of Kumbalangi Grama Panchayat in Ernakulam District and is basically concerned with the increase of road and motor accidents occurring due to the negligent and reckless driving, and also due to the rash driving by drunken drivers. The petitioner has also relied upon Ext. P5 report drawn by KMEA Engineering College, Kerala and has also relied upon the facts and figures of the fatal accidents noted in the said report from the year 2010-2016 in the National Highway, State Highway and other roads. According to the petitioner, there is alarming increase in the road accidents and unless and until the respective Governments take appropriate action in accordance with the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 ('MV Act, 1988" for short), the Rules thereto and the Road Safety Act, 2007, the fatal accidents would increase day by day due to various factors, including the increase of the vehicles, narrow roads, the unscientific constructions of the roads, objectionable installations, and other component factors like non-removal of concrete and waste and useless materials from roads and footpaths.