The Claims Tribunal cannot entertain claims filed more than six months after an accident, as dictated by Section 166(3) of the Motor Vehicles Act, ensuring strict procedural compliance.

JUDGMENT :

DEVASHIS BARUAH, J.

Heard the learned counsels appearing on behalf of the petitioners as well as the learned counsels for the respondents in the present batch of applications. This Court has also heard Mr. D. Nath, the learned Senior Government Advocate who represents the Transport Department and the Home Department, of the Government of Assam and Mr. R. Borpujari, the learned counsel who was requested to assist this Court.

PREFACE

2. The present batch of Applications filed under Article 227 of the Constitution challenge the various orders passed by the learned Motor Accident Claims Tribunals (for short, ‘the learned Tribunals’) constituted under Section 165 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (for short, ‘the Act of 1988’).

3. The Applicants herein who are the claimants in the claim proceedings are aggrieved by the orders rejecting their claim applications on the ground that Section 166 (3) of the Act of 1988 does not permit entertaining a claim application beyond a period of six months from the date of occurrence of accident whereas the Applicants who are Insurance Companies are aggrieved by the orders passed by the learned Tribunals whereby the claims proceedings instituted beyond a period of six months from the date of occurrence of the accident have been entertained by condoning the delay.

4. This Court taking into account the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019 (for short, ‘the Amending Act’); the Rules framed therein under by the Central Government and the directions passed by the Supreme Court in the case of Gohar Mohammed vs. Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation and Others reported in (2023) 4 SCC 381 impleaded the Home Department as well as the Transport Department of the Government of Assam in one of the applications, i.e. CRP(IO)No.111/2024.

ISSUE

5. The question which arise in the present proceedings are as to whether a claim application filed beyond a period of six months from the date of occurrence of the accident can be entertained and if not what are the learned Tribunals required to do keeping in mind that the provisions of Chapters XI and XII of the Act of 1988 are provided to grant compensation to the beneficiary or the victim if on account of a motor vehicle accident it results in death or bodily injury?

6. For deciding the issue as formulated above, i.e. whether the learned Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal would have the power to accept a claim petition filed beyond the period stipulated in Section 166 (3) of the Act of 1988, and if not, what steps are required to be taken by the learned Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, this Court at the outset find it relevant to take note of the changes brought into effect by the Amending Act, Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989 framed by the Central Government and the Assam Motor Vehicle Rules, 2013 framed by the State of Assam.

ANALYSIS OF THE RELEVANT PROVISIONS

7. The Amending Act came into effect on 01.04.2022. The Amending Act completely changed the procedure to make claims under the Act of 1988. The Central Government also carried out various amendments to the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 (for short, ‘the Rules of 1989’).

8. Chapter XI of the Act of 1988 was completely substituted by the Amending Act. The heading of Chapter XI reads as “Insurance of Motor Vehicles against Third Party Risks.”

9. Section 146 of the Act of 1988 imposes a mandatory requirement that every motor vehicle has to be insured with a certificate of Insurance. Sub-Section (2) of the