HC Asks NHAI To Respond To Plea Challenging Collection Of Double Toll Tax From Vehicles Without FASTag

The Delhi Significant Court docket sought on Friday the reaction of the Nationwide Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Centre to a plea difficult the rule making it obligatory for autos without the need of FASTag to fork out double the the toll tax.

A bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad issued notices to the NHAI and the Ministry of Highway Transportation and Highways (MoRT&H) on the petition which contended that the rule was discriminatory, arbitrary and against public interest as it empowers the NHAI to obtain toll at double the price, if compensated in dollars.

The higher court granted 4 months to the authorities to file their replies and outlined the matter for further more listening to on April 18.

Petitioner Ravinder Tyagi, represented by advocate Praveen Agrawal, has sought the quashing of a provision of the Countrywide Highway Charges (Determination of Rates and Collection) Amendment Principles, 2020 go through with MoRT&H letters and NHAI round thanks to which commuters without the need of a FASTag on their motor vehicles are certain to fork out double the toll tax.

FASTag is a unit that employs Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) engineering for creating toll payments specifically although the car is in movement. FASTag (RFID Tag) is affixed on the windscreen of the car or truck and allows a client to make the toll payments straight from the account which is linked to it.

The plea said these regulations and the circular transform all the toll lanes to 100 for each cent FASTag lanes with the consequence that commuters not having a practical FASTag are compelled to pay double the toll total.

The petitioner, a attorney, claimed he was compelled to install a FASTag product in his auto due to the fact of the compulsion of having to pay double the toll in money.

He mentioned right before putting in the FASTag he had paid out toll tax at double the charge. He referred to the agony of the commuters that he saw all through his visits from Delhi to Faridabad in Haryana.

The plea mentioned the petitioner had created a representation to the NHAI and the ministry but he was not satisfied with the response soon after which he approached the superior court docket.

He sought a path to the authorities involved to cease the follow of accumulating double toll tax, indicating it was violative of Short article 14 (equality right before law) and 19 (liberty of speech and expression) of the Constitution.