Supreme Court Proposes Adding Unpaid Traffic Fines to Power Bills

The Supreme Court has suggested linking unpaid traffic challans to electricity bills to help recover pending fines across the country.

Fine Recovery

States and Union territories have issued electronic challans worth about Rs 45,000 crore, but authorities have only managed to recover roughly Rs 25,000 crore so far. A bench consisting of Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan noted that simply issuing thousands or lakhs of fines is not enough. Justice Pardiwala stated that the real challenge lies in collecting the money owed. The court proposed adding unpaid traffic penalties directly to monthly electricity bills so that people would be forced to pay them to avoid getting their power lines disconnected. The bench emphasized that authorities must find practical ways to solve this problem on the ground. However, the court also clarified that this idea is merely a suggestion from the hearing rather than a formal order for immediate use.

Vehicle Restrictions

To curb unpaid fines, the court discussed blocking several vehicle-related services until drivers clear their dues. Authorities could stop the renewal of registration certificates, hold back duplicate registration documents, and block vehicle ownership transfers. Other proposed steps include blacklisting defaulters on the Parivahan portal, withholding fitness and pollution certificates, and stopping the renewal of driving licences. The bench also talked about suspending licences that are already active. Police could conduct random checks to spot vehicles with pending dues and impound them on the spot.

Context

These suggestions came up during a hearing on electronic traffic enforcement as part of a long-running public interest litigation focused on improving road safety. Courts often examine systemic issues in public safety cases to push government bodies toward better enforcement of existing laws.