Supreme Court says mediclaim benefits cannot be deducted from motor accident compensation
The top court stated that the benefit received under a Mediclaim policy flows from premiums paid by the insured person over a period of time.
In a significant directive, the Telangana High Court has ruled that the police cannot stop citizens and force them to pay pending challans or take coercive measures such as snatching the keys of their vehicles.
The court’s directive came after two writ petitions were filed by V Raghavendra, a resident of Secunderabad, against the coercive methods allegedly employed by the police to recover fines.
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Significantly, a few days earlier, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy had suggested implementing on-the-spot traffic fines, which would be automatically debited from the bank accounts of violators.
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The single-judge bench stated that while citizens may pay fines at their discretion, the police must follow due process of law before taking any action against violators.
“If the police want to take any action, due process must be followed, including issuing notices. Snatching away keys or taking any other coercive steps over pending challans is impermissible,” the court observed.
The petitioner had approached the court after he was fined ₹1,235 for triple riding. However, his counsel argued that the challan was legally invalid as it did not mention the specific legal provision allegedly violated.
It was also pointed out that under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, the penalty for triple riding ranges between ₹100 and ₹300. Since the state has not adopted the amendments to the Act passed in 2019, it cannot impose higher penalties, the counsel contended.
Additionally, the court was informed that police personnel were using personal mobile phones, hand cameras, and other non-certified devices to impose penalties instead of approved and certified surveillance cameras.
Several citizens welcomed the court’s directive, alleging harassment and coercive practices by enforcement authorities.
Meanwhile, Hyderabad Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar has warned citizens about fake traffic challan messages being circulated by fraudsters.
These messages often contain phishing links that closely resemble official government e-challan portals and, if clicked, can lead to bank accounts being emptied within moments.
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