Subhechcha Ganguly 
The Supreme Court’s five-judge Constitution bench, led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, ruled on Wednesday that individuals holding a light motor vehicle (LMV) driving licence are allowed to drive transport vehicles with a gross weight of up to 7,500 kg. The bench acknowledged that road accidents are a significant concern in the country, but noted that insurance companies’ petitions failed to provide empirical evidence linking LMV licence holders to a higher incidence of accidents. The Court had been reviewing whether an LMV driving licence qualifies a person to operate a transport vehicle within the LMV category.
The legal issue had sparked numerous disputes over insurance claims in accident cases involving transport vehicles driven by individuals holding LMV licences. Insurance companies argued that motor accident claim tribunals (MACTs) and courts were ordering them to pay claims without considering their objections regarding the validity of LMV driving licences for such vehicles.
The bench, which also included Justices Hrishikesh Roy, P.S. Narasimha, Pankaj Mithal, and Manoj Misra, had reserved its judgment on August 21. In 2017, the Supreme Court, in the case of *Mukund Dewangan vs. Oriental Insurance Company Limited*, ruled that transport vehicles with a gross weight of up to 7,500 kg should be considered within the LMV category. This ruling was accepted by the Centre, and the relevant rules were amended to reflect the judgment.The Constitution bench began hearing a total of 76 petitions on July 18 last year to address this legal question.
