SHYAMALENDU ROY Vs. STATE OF WEST BENGAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The judgment of the Court was as follows: None appears in spite of the matter being called on. I have been able to dispose of this matter with the able assistance of Mr. N.I. Khan.

(2.) The petitioner has challenged the action of the Motor Vehicles authority by way of seizure on the ground of non-payment of road taxes as well as non- availability of the valid documents to ply the vehicle on road.

(3.) Having heard Mr. Khan and having considered the materials in the writ petition, I am of the view that the action of the Motor Vehicles authority is not unjustified under the law. From the representation of the writ petitioner itself it appears that the petitioner admittedly failed to pay the road taxes from 1990 till the date of seizure of the vehicle. On the date of seizure of the vehicle when the petitioner could not satisfy the road taxes having been paid the petitioner had no right to ply the vehicle on road, of course he has made out a story in his representation that since 1st April, 1990 the vehicle was lying idle at the garage for the purpose of overhauling of the engine as well as repairing of the body of the vehicle for which he had made a representation before the authority concerned on 16th Sept., 1991 for exemption for the period as above from non-payment of road tax between 31st March, 1990 till Sept., 1991. There is simply no explanation as to why the road tax was not paid even from Oct., 1991 till the date of seizure of the vehicle for about nearly eight years.