Gujarat High Court
Dineshchandra Viththalbhai Patel vs State Of Gujarat & 2....Opponent(S) on 5 September, 2014
Author: Bhaskar Bhattacharya
Bench: Bhaskar Bhattacharya, J.B.Pardiwala
C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT
IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
WRIT PETITION (PIL) NO. 215 of 2014
FOR APPROVAL AND SIGNATURE:
HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MR. BHASKAR BHATTACHARYA
and
HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE J.B.PARDIWALA
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1 Whether Reporters of Local Papers may be allowed to see the judgment ?
2 To be referred to the Reporter or not ?
3 Whether their Lordships wish to see the fair copy of the judgment ?
4 Whether this case involves a substantial question of law as to the interpretation of the
Constitution of India, 1950 or any order made thereunder ?
5 Whether it is to be circulated to the civil judge ?
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DINESHCHANDRA VITHTHALBHAI PATEL....Applicant(s)
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT & 2....Opponent(s)
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Appearance:
MR RAMKRISHNA B DAVE, ADVOCATE for the Applicant(s) No. 1
MR. VANDAN BAXI, ASSTT.GOVERNMENT PLEADER for the Opponent(s) No. 1 - 3
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CORAM: HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MR.
BHASKAR BHATTACHARYA
and
HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE J.B.PARDIWALA
Date :05/09/2014
CAV JUDGMENT
(PER : HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE J.B.PARDIWALA) Page 1 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT
1. By this writ application in the nature of a Public Interest Litigation, the petitioner a resident of Ahmedabad has prayed for the following reliefs :
"(A) Direct the respondents to forthwith stop the practice of calling the applicant personally who applies for the renewal or duplicate of the driving license in the electronic form 7 (smart card);
(B) Pending the hearing and disposal of the petition, the Honourable Court be pleased to direct the respondents to issue the driving license duly renewed or the duplicate thereof without insisting on the presence of the applicant and deliver the same by hand delivery without insisting to issue the same by speed post;
(C) Direct the respondents to make the arrangement in the software in the computer so as to include all the classes of motor vehicles allowed to drive;
(D) Be pleased to pass such other and further order/s, grant such other reliefs as may be deemed just and proper in the facts and circumstances of the present case."
2. The case made-out by the petitioner may be summed-up thus:
2.1 According to the petitioner there is undue harassment at the end of the respondent no.3 to a person who applies for renewal of his driving license or if he applies for issue of a Page 2 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT duplicate license and also when such person requests for a change of address in the driving license. It is the case of the petitioner that the respondent no.3 insists on compulsory presence of the person who seeks renewal of the license etc. Everyday approximately 1000 such applications are taken on hand. The person has to compulsorily remain present in the Office for the purpose of clicking his photograph. It takes more than 4 to 5 hours before the entire process is completed.
According to the petitioner, it is nothing but sheer waste of time.
2.2 It is the case of the petitioner that the driving license is issued either in a Form-6 or in Form - 7 and the applicants were never asked to remain personally present for renewing or issue of duplicate driving license in Form-6 because it was not compulsory. There has been no change in the position of law mandating the personal presence of the holder of the driving license while issuing the same in Form-7. The complete data of the holder of the license is with the Office of the respondent no.3 stored in the computer and if at all a photograph is needed to be changed for the purpose of renewal then for such purpose the presence of the holder of the driving license is not necessary.
2.3 It is the case of the petitioner that under the Right to Information the respondent no.3 was called upon to clarify as to why the presence of the license holder at the time of renewal is insisted on. The petitioner was informed that the applicants whose data is stored in the computer and is in the Biometric system, those applicants are called for two reasons, first, it is only if the applicant comes personally then the Page 3 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT photograph could be changed and secondly, the presence of the applicant is insisted on for the personal verification of his status i.e. whether he is living / dead / in the country / in a foreign country.
2.4 According to the petitioner the Rule-18 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 lays down the procedure for renewal of the driving license and the said rule is completely silent so far as the insistence on the personal presence of the applicant before the concerned Officer is concerned. If the information sought for under the said Rule-18 is provided in one way or the other then it is not necessary to ask the applicant to personally remain present.
2.5 It is also the case of the petitioner that the respondents have stopped the issue of the Smart Card license to any person even in cases of emergency and they are delivered compulsorily by speed post. By adopting such a procedure, the Government spends around Rs.5.00 crore per annum towards the delivery expense.
2.6 According to the petitioner, the respondents be directed to accept the application for renewal or issue of a duplicate driving license without insisting on the personal presence of the applicant by adopting the procedure for issue of the driving license in Form-6.
3. The respondents have appeared on notice being served and an affidavit-in-reply has been filed duly sworn by an Officer on Special Duty with the Commissioner of Transport, Gandhinagar.
Page 4 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT3.1 The averments made in the affidavit-in-reply are as under:-
A) In order to bring transparency and e-governance through induction of Information Technology in and to make available the benefit of IT to the citizens of the state of Gujarat, the State Government had decided to issue the Driving license in smart card form. It is submitted that State of Gujarat was one of the earliest and foremost states to migrate from a paper book system of Driving Licenses ("DL") and Registration Certificates ("RC"), which have their own drawbacks with regards to safety, Security and revenue collection in comparison to computerized micro-processor based smart cards which are tamper-proof, can store vast Quantities of data, which are easily accessible and retrievable and which cannot be forged or duplicated, leading to enhancement of revenue collection.
B) That earlier the Driving license was issued in Form-6 i.e. manual booklet format. It was prepared manually. The comparison and benefit of issuance of Driving license in smart card format are as under:
Paper Book Format Smart Card Format Manual license contains hand Smart card contains uniform written particulars. computerized particulars which are easy for read.
It can be altered or edited. It is uneditable.
No security features therefore Security features contained
easy to temper. therein makes it temper proof.
Not easy to carry. Easy to carry. It can be carried
even in pocket, and it durable.
C) The features of Smart Card based Driving License System are:
Page 5 of 18
C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT
a) Speedier issue of licenses.
b) electronic data capturing in the form of a centralized
database of license holders of the entire State.
c) facility of storing fingerprints/ photographs/ signature in the chip which cannot be forged.
d) in-built facility for recording of offences by hand held terminals (reader & writer).
e) easy to carry and easy to check.
f) Finger-print, photograph and signature of the license-
holder taken which eliminates the possibility of
impersonation and mischief. The system has the
attributes to compare fingerprints on defined scales on the basis of first name, surname & date of birth which shall eliminate the possibility of issue of more than one license to the same person.
g) For endorsements, renewals or issue of duplicate license, the presence of license-holder is mandatory for the purpose of capturing and storing latest photograph, signature & finger-prints. The physical presence prevents issue of license by proxy delivery of driving license to the rightful owner. This exercise also prevents the involvement of the middle-man or agents.
h) The system has the capability to compute validities on the basis of date of birth, category & class of vehicle selected. This eliminates room for human error while preparation of the final license;Page 6 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT
D) The smart card Driving License was issued from 2001-02 to 2010, not in accordance with the SARTHI software prepared by National Informatics Center, under the instruction of Central Govt., and in between above stated duration from 2001 to 2010, the State Govt. allotted the work of preparation of Smart Card to the M/s Smart Chip Ltd. After 2010, all driving license issued in smart card format was through SARTHI software. Therefore, the department has to operate two separate data base formats in case of driving licenses issued prior to the implementation of SARTHI software. There are about 76 lakh data for period prior to implementation of SARTHI software in 2010.
For example, an applicant holding the driving license in smart card format issued prior to the implementation of SARTHI software, will come for renewal of license, then in that case, after receipt of fees, application and necessary documents, the department will proceed for integration of SARTHI software with pre-SARTHI data. Since pre-SARTHI data comprises of text data and biometric data, this integration require new biometric i.e. thumb impression, photograph, signature etc. It is pertinent to note that there is a technical difficulty in integration of pre-SARTHI biometrics in SARTHI software. Therefore the presence of license holder is inevitable to renew the license and other related procedure.
E) It is pertinent to note that the driving license is considered to be an important proof of identification in various government departments, as well as Banks, mobile phone companies, airport etc. It is well known fact that by increase of age, the signature and face of person also change in varying degrees. At the time of renewal, remaining present before licensing authority, will be a good opportunity for citizens and also the Government to update the signature, photographs and other related data. Driving license is Page 7 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT very important document for various purposes e.g. in case of motor accident claim, the valid driving license is very important proof for the victim as well as the accused person for applicability in insurance policy. It is pertinent to note that at the time of renewal, it is ascertained that the holder of driving license is physically capable to drive the vehicle. It is also ascertained that the person who applied for renewal, duplicate license or any other process, is the original license holder. To ensure, above stated matters, the presence of license holder is required to perform the function of licensing authority with accuracy as provided in law.
F) Section-14 of The Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 provides for the currency of licenses to drive motor vehicles. Section-15 provides for renewal of driving license and proviso of sub-rule-3 of Rule-18 prescribes for application, documents, procedure for renewal of driving license and issuance of duplicate driving license. Rule-12, 13, 14 of the Gujarat Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 prescribes for replacement of photographs, issue of duplicate driving license and change of address respectively. Sub Rule-2 of Rule-13 prescribes regarding the procedure for issue of duplicate driving license, wherein it is mentioned that upon the receipt of application for issue of duplicate driving license, the licensing authority shall, after making such inquiries as it may think, if satisfied, issue a duplicate license. It is pertinent to note that not in any manner, these legal provisions prohibit the respondents to require the presence of an applicant in case of renewal or duplicate driving license.
G) In view of the above, to eliminate the possibility of impersonation, fraud or/and mischief, the possibility of issue of more than one license to the same person, to avail an opportunity to citizen for recording his current signature and photograph, the presence of the holder of driving license, in smart card form, is required in case of renewal or duplicate driving license.
Page 8 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENTH) With respect to the issue no. 2, it is stated that the State Government has issued a resolution no. MVD-2008-951-KH, dated 29/3/2008, in which, it has been decided to deliver the smart card R.C .Book and smart card Driving licenses to the applicants/owners by speed post of postal department and not by hand delivery. After issuance of resolution the Commissioner of Transport has issued a circular to all RTO/ARTO dt.9-2-2011 in which, the procedure of dispatching the R.C. book and smart card DL to the applicants/owners of the vehicles has laid down. The petitioner is challenging the delivery of Driving licenses through speed post in lieu of hand delivery practice, after three years of the implementation of the said system which is also suffering from delay and latches.
I) That the Driving Licenses are being sent by Speed Post system of Department of Posts for the following reasons :-
(a) Normally RTO Offices are located in District Head quarters or other important places in the State. The general public members coming from the extended areas, for issuance of driving licenses or Registration of vehicles, have to incur expenditure of Bus / Rail fares/ Rickshaw charges, if they are called for collection of such documents personally by hand.
(b) It also consumes their time. To avoid this and to facilitate the public, it has been decided to send these documents by speed post through Department of Posts.
(c) It costs for local article Rs.15/- and for other than local article Rs.35/- per article being postage charges. These rates are cheaper than the actual expenditure to be incurred by the applicants for coming and going back o and fro RTO offices for collection of these documents personally by hand.Page 9 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT
(d) It eliminates roles of the middleman and agents and makes direct delivery of documents to the rightful owner directly in their hands."
4. Mr.Ramkrishna B. Dave, the learned advocate appearing on behalf of the petitioner very strenuously contended before us that although the Rule-18 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 relating to the renewal of driving license is completely silent insofar as the personal presence of the applicant is concerned, yet the respondent no.3's insistence on personal presence of such applicant is an action contrary to and dehors the law. The only requirement at the time of renewal of the driving license is payment of the appropriate fee, three copies of the applicant's recent passport size photographs, the original driving license and the medical certificate in Form-1A.
4.1 According to Mr.Dave, once there is a medical certificate in Form-1A, then the same would take care of the inquiry as regards the status of the applicant, more particularly whether he is living / dead / is in the country / is in a foreign country.
4.2 Mr.Dave submits that this petition in the nature of public interest litigation has been filed with the sole intention to see that people are not put to any harassment as they have to wait for 4 to 5 hours at the office of the respondent no.3 before the entire procedure of renewal is completed.
5. On the other hand, this petition has been vehemently opposed by Mr.Baxi, the learned A.G.P. appearing on behalf of Page 10 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT the State. Mr.Baxi submits hat there is no element of any public interest involved in this petition. Mr.Baxi submits that it is a settled law that mere hardship or inconvenience caused by any provision of law by itself would not be sufficient to declare such provision as bad in law. Mr.Baxi submits that the insistence on the personal presence of the applicant is with a definite object and purpose. If for the purpose of renewal of the license or issue of a duplicate license the authorities insist on the presence of such applicant, then such action could not be said to be violative of any of the fundamental rights or any accrued legal right of such a person. Mr.Baxi submits that there being no merit in this petition the same deserves to be rejected.
6. Before adverting to the rival submissions canvassed on either side, we deem it necessary to look into the few provisions of law relating to the issue of the driving license and the renewal of the same.
SECTION 14 : Currency of licences to drive motor vehicles:
(1) A learner's licence issued under this Act shall, subject to the other provisions of this Act, be effective for a period of six months from the date of issue of the licence.
(2) A driving licence issued or renewed under this Act shall,-
(a) in the case of a licence to drive a transport vehicle, be effective for a period of three years: 13 [ x x ] [Provided that in the case of licence to drive a transport vehicle carrying goods of dangerous or hazardous nature be effective for a period of one year and renewal thereof shall be subject to the condition that the driver undergoes one day refresher course of Page 11 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT the prescribed syllabus; and]
(b) in the case of any other licence,-
(i) if the person obtaining the licence, either originally or on renewal thereof, has not attained the age of 14 [fifty years] on the date of issue or, as the case may be, renewal thereof,-
(A) be effective for a period of twenty years from the dale of such issue or renewal; or (B) until the date on which such person attains the age of 14 [fifty years], whichever is earlier;15
[(ii) if the person referred to in sub-clause (0, has attained the age of fifty years on the date of issue or as the case may be, renewal thereof, be effective, on payment of such fee as may be prescribed, for a period of five years from the date of such issue or renewal;] Provided that every driving licence shall, notwithstanding its expiry under this sub-section continue to be effective for a period of thirty days from such expiry.
7. A plain reading of Section 14 of the Act referred to above indicates that if the person, who has obtained the licence for the first time, or on the renewal thereof is below the age of 50 years on the date of issue or as the case may be renewal thereof, such licence will be effective for a period of twenty years from the date of issue or renewal. If the person referred to in sub-clause (i) has attained the age of 50 years on the date of issue or as the case may be renewal thereof, will be effective for a period of five years from the date of such issue or renewal.
8. Thus, any person below the age of 50 years has not to do anything at least for a period of 20 years, unless in the meantime his licence is lost or destroyed, and applies for a Page 12 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT fresh licence. If the holder of the licence, on the date of the issue or renewal is above 50 years of age, then such person will have to get the licence renewed every five years thereafter. Here also there is a definite object behind the same. After 50 years of age, ordinarily the eyesight of the driver would get weak, including his overall reflexes. In such circumstances, the legislature has thought fit to enact a provision, which makes it mandatory for a person who has attained the age of 50 years on the date of issue or renewal of the licence to get it renewed periodically every five years.
SECTION 15 : Renewal of driving licences (1)Any licensing authority may, on application made to it, renew a driving licence issued under the provisions of this Act with effect from the date of its expiry:
Provided that in any case where the application for the renewal of a licence is made more than thirty days after the date of its expiry, the driving licence shall be renewed with effect from the date of its renewal:
Provided further that where the application is for the renewal of a licence to drive a transport vehicle or where in any other case the applicant has attained the age of forty years, the same shall be accompanied by a medical certificate in the same form and in the same manner as is referred to in sub-section (3) of section 8 , and the provisions of sub-section (4) of section 8 shall, so far as may be, apply in relation to every such case as they apply in relation to a learner's licence.
(2) An application for the renewal of a driving licence shall be made in such form and accompanied by such documents as may be prescribed by the Central Government.
(3) Where an application for the renewal of a driving licence is made previous to, or not more than thirty days after the date of its expiry, the fee payable for such renewal shall be such as may be prescribed by the Central Government in this behalf.
(4) Where an application for the renewal of a driving licence is made more than thirty days after the date of its expiry the fee payable for such renewal shall be such amount as may be prescribed by the Central Government:Page 13 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT
Provided that the fee referred to in sub-section (3) may be accepted by the licensing authority in respect of an application for the renewal of a driving licence made under this sub-section if it is satisfied that the applicant was prevented by good and sufficient cause from applying within the time specified in sub-section (3):
Provided further that if the application is made more than five years after the driving licence has ceased to be effective the licensing authority may refuse to renew the driving licence unless the applicant undergoes and passes to its satisfaction the test of competence to drive referred to in sub-section (3) of section 9 .
(5) Where the application for renewal has been rejected, the fee paid shall be refunded to such extent and in such manner as may be prescribed by the Central Government.
(6) Where the authority renewing the driving licence is not the authority which issued the driving licence it shall intimate the fact of renewal to the authority which issued the driving licence.
RULE 12 : Replacement of the photograph (1) Where, at any time, it appears to a licensing authority that the photograph affixed to any licence issued under Chapter II of the Act has ceased to be clear likeness of the holder, the licensing authority may require the holder to surrender the licence forthwith, and to furnish two clear copies of a recent photograph of himself and the holder shall, within such time as the licensing authority may specify, appear in person before the licensing authority and present the photographs accordingly.
(2) Where the holder fails to comply with such requisition made by the licensing authority, the licence shall cease to be valid on the expiry of the said period.
(3) Where, at any time, if a holder of a licence so desires, a licensing authority may replace the photograph on his licence by a recent photograph of himself.
(4) Upon the receipt of the copies of photograph as provided in sub-rule (1) or sub-rule (3), the licensing authority shall remove the old photograph from the licence, and shall affix and seal thereto one copy of new photograph and note the date of such replacement, and return the licence to the holder, and shall, if it is not the licensing authority by which the licence was issued, forward the second copy of the photograph to that authority.
(5) The fee, for replacing a photograph under this rule shall be as provided in rule 6 and shall be paid along with the photograph and application.
RULE 13 : Issue of duplicate driving licence Page 14 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT (1) Where at any time any driving licence is lost, destroyed, torn, defaced or mutilated the holder shall forthwith report the matter to the original licensing authority and shall apply for issue of a duplicate licence, in Form L.L.D. along with the fee prescribed under rule 6 and where a photograph is required to be affixed to a duplicate licence, two clear copies of a recent photograph of himself.
(2) Upon the receipt of such report the licensing authority shall, after making such enquiries as it may think fit, if satisfied that a duplicate may properly be issued, issue a duplicate licence duly stamped "Duplicate" in red ink and the date of issue of the duplicate. Provided that where subsequent to issue of a duplicate licence, it is found that there has been an endorsement by a Court since the date of the grant or last renewal of the licence, it shall be lawful for the licensing authority to call for the duplicate licence and make the necessary endorsement thereon.
(3) Where a duplicate licence has been issued upon representation that a licence has been lost, and the original licence is afterwards found or received by the holder, the holder shall immediately return the duplicate licence to the issuing authority.
(4) If at any time it appears to an Inspector of Motor Vehicles or to a licensing authority that a driving licence held by any person is so torn, defaced or mutilated in any way as to cease to be reasonably legible, such Inspector of Motor Vehicles or the authority may, by order in writing, impound the driving licence and require the holder, to obtain a duplicate driving licence.
RULE 14 : Change of address (1) If the holder of a driving licence ceases to reside or have his place of business at the address recorded in the driving licence, he shall, within thirty days of any such change of address, intimate his new address, to the licensing authority by which the licence was issued, and, if the new address is within the jurisdiction of another licensing authority, to that other licensing authority.
(2) Upon the receipt of such intimation, if it is not the licensing authority by which the licence was issued, the licensing authority shall intimate the change of address to that authority.
RULE 15 : General duties, functions and conduct of drivers of transport vehicles The driver of a transport vehicle,-
Page 15 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT(a) shall not cause or allow any person, animal or thing to be placed or to be in the space reserved for the driver's seat or otherwise, in such a way as to impede him in having a clear vision of the road or proper control of the vehicle:
(b) shall not knowingly drive the vehicles when there is not sufficient fuel in the vehicle to enable him to reach the next fuel pump on the route;
(c) shall not loiter or unduly delay upon any journey but shall proceed to the destination with all reasonable dispatch:
(d) shall, at all times, exercise all reasonable care and diligence to maintain the vehicle in a fit and proper condition and shall not knowingly drive the vehicle when the vehicle or any brake, tyre or lamp thereof is in a defective condition likely to render the driving of such vehicle a source of danger to persons and vehicles using such place;
(e) shall behave in a civil and orderly manner towards passengers, intending passengers, or the hirer of the vehicle;
(f) shall take all reasonable precautions to prevent the goods or the luggage, from being spoiled or lost, on the way;
(g) shall, as far as may be reasonably possible having regard to his duties, be responsible for due observance of the provisions of the Act and the rules made thereunder.
Rule 18 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 provides for the renewal of the driving licence. Rule 18 reads as under:-
(1) An application for the renewal of a driving licence shall be made in Form 9 to the licensing authority having jurisdiction over the area in which the applicant ordinarily resides or carries on business and shall be accompanied by-
(a) appropriate fee as specified in rule 32;
(b) three copies of the applicant's recent 46 [passport size photograph], if renewal is to be made in Form 6,
(c) the driving licence,
(d) the medical certificate in 47 [Form 1-A] (2) Where the driving licence authorises the holder of such licence to drive a transport vehicle as well as any other vehicle, then the licensing authority shall, subject to the production of medical certificate, renew such licence for the appropriate period as specified in sub-section (2) of section 14.Page 16 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT 48
"(3) Where the licensing authority renewing the driving licence is not the licensing authority who issued the driving licence the fact of the renewal shall be intimated to the licensing authority who issued the driving licence :
Provided that in case the application is for issuance of a duplicate driving licence which has been lost, torn or mutilated such that the identification or authenticity of the document cannot be reasonably established, the licensing authority receiving such application shall on confirmation from the original issuing authority, issue the duplicate driving licence:
Provided also that if such confirmation is not received within 60 days, duplicate licence shall be issued, without waiting for the confirmation.".
9. Mr. Dave has laid much emphasis on the words "Any licensing authority may, on application made to it" as contained in Section 15 (1) of the Act, 1988. The substance of Mr. Dave's argument is that even the Section contemplates that if an application is received by the licensing authority in any manner, then the licensing authority is obliged to consider the same and renew the driving licence. According to Mr. Dave, for such purpose, application need not be tendered in person before the licensing authority.
10. We are not impressed by such submission of Mr. Dave, as the insistence on the presence of the person concerned is for many reasons, as stated above. After all, it is a policy decision and we do not find it so unreasonable or arbitrary or contrary to any statutory rules, so that the same can be struck down. It is now well settled that to successfully maintain a writ- application, the petitioner must point out that by the action or inaction of the "State" within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution of India, any of his fundamental rights or the accrued legal right has been infringed. By insisting on the personal presence of the applicant for the purpose of renewal Page 17 of 18 C/WPPIL/215/2014 CAV JUDGMENT of the driving licence, the same cannot be termed as violative of any of the fundamental rights or any accrued legal right of such a person.
11. So far as dispatching of the licence by Speed Post is concerned, the same has also been explained in detail and being a matter of policy, we should not interfere with the same. It is for the concerned authority to run the administration and they are the best people to decide what would serve better in the overall interest of the administration.
12. Before parting we deem it necessary to observe that the authorities concerned should evolve some mechanism by which the hardship, which is caused to the people at large when they come for renewal of their driving licence, could be minimized. We are told that it takes almost four to five hours for the entire process to be completed. In today's time of advance technology and with some increase in the manpower we are sure that such problem can be tackled. What should be such mechanism is absolutely for the authorities to think over and we offer no comments on the same.
13. For the foregoing reasons, we do not find any merit in this petition and the same is accordingly rejected. No costs.
(BHASKAR BHATTACHARYA, C.J.) (J.B.PARDIWALA, J.) Mohandas Page 18 of 18