Rajasthan Transport Cannot Suspend RC of UP-Registered Bus: Allahabad High Court Quashes Notice
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In a significant judicial verdict defining cross-border transport jurisdiction, the Allahabad High Court has held that the Rajasthan Transport Authority possesses no legal jurisdiction or authority to suspend the Registration Certificate (RC) of a commercial bus registered in Uttar Pradesh. Allowing a writ petition filed by bus operator Dinesh Singh Sikarwar, the High Court quashed the punitive suspension notice issued by the Rajasthan Transport Authority on February 12. The division bench highlighted that statutory authorities in one state cannot exercise extraterritorial powers over documents issued by registering authorities in another state, reaffirming the legal safeguards available to interstate commercial transport operators.
Division Bench Ruling: Jurisdictional Boundaries Under the Motor Vehicles Act
The bench tackled the core statutory provisions governing commercial fleet registration across state lines:
High Court Bench Composition: The landmark ruling was delivered by a division bench comprising Justice Arindam Sinha and Justice Satyavir Singh at Prayagraj.
The Operator's Grievance: The petitioner operated a passenger bus bearing an official Uttar Pradesh registration mark; following an alleged infraction within Rajasthan's territorial boundary, the Rajasthan Transport Authority suspended the vehicle's RC and uploaded the punitive suspension onto the national National Informatics Centre (NIC) Vahan portal.
Rajasthan Government's Contention: State counsel representing Rajasthan argued that Sections 53 and 55 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, grant enforcement authorities the power to suspend and cancel vehicle registrations to enforce road safety and regulatory compliance.
Court's Rejection of Extraterritorial Powers: The High Court held that while regional authorities hold the power to regulate vehicular traffic within their territorial limits, they cannot revoke or suspend identity instruments legally conferred by a sister state's transport department.
Supreme Court Precedent in Mahendra Gupta Case: Binding Legal Doctrine
Counsel for the petitioner presented well-settled apex court jurisprudence that definitively circumscribed regional enforcement limits:
Apex Court Precedent Cited: Advocate Girish Kumar Malviya, appearing for the petitioner, cited the Supreme Court of India's ruling in Mahendra Gupta vs. State of Madhya Pradesh.
Limits of Inter-State Penal Actions: The Supreme Court precedent unequivocally established that enforcement agencies cannot suspend the RC of an outside-state vehicle; the maximum statutory penalty an external state can impose is to prohibit the specific vehicle from plying on roads within its own state borders.
Dismissal of Review Petitions: The High Court noted that the Rajasthan Transport Authority was already an active party to that landmark apex court litigation, where its subsequent review petition had been dismissed.
Finality of Jurisdiction: Having exhausted its legal challenges before the Supreme Court, the Rajasthan Transport Authority was legally barred from re-agitating the same jurisdictional defense before the High Court.
Vehicle Verification Before UP Authorities and Final Relief
The High Court considered additional compliance actions taken by the vehicle owner:
Presented to Parent Authority: The division bench observed that the bus operator had already produced the bus before the designated Uttar Pradesh registering authority for requisite physical verification and regulatory compliance.
Immediate Quashing of Notice: Finding the Rajasthan transport department's February 12 action legally unsustainable and violative of binding Supreme Court law, the bench set aside the suspension order.
Relief for Inter-State Transporters: The verdict establishes vital protection for thousands of private bus operators and interstate commercial logistics companies frequently exposed to jurisdictional overreach during cross-state travel.
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