The Kerala High Court has suspended toll collection on the Edapally–Mannuthy stretch of National Highway 544 for four weeks, citing severe traffic congestion and public hardship. The Division Bench comprising Justices A. Muhamed Mustaque and Harisankar V. Menon noted that the ongoing construction of underpasses, flyovers, and drainage systems, coupled with poor service road maintenance, had made commuting through the highway a gruelling experience, with delays of up to 2–3 hours.
The Court criticised the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for its “total apathy” in addressing persistent public grievances despite repeated warnings. It observed that while road users are legally bound to pay toll, this obligation is tied to the NHAI’s responsibility to ensure safe and motorable roads. If the public is forced to endure unmotorable conditions, the toll regime loses its moral and statutory justification.
Referring to the doctrine of public trust and recent Supreme Court rulings, the Court underlined that the government and its concessionaires cannot enforce contractual toll rights when public benefit is missing. It emphasised that no agreement between the State and a private entity can override the obligation to protect public interest.
The Bench directed the Central Government, in consultation with the NHAI, the State Chief Secretary, and the concessionaire (Guruvayoor Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd.), to devise a practical and legally sound solution within four weeks. Until then, toll collection shall remain suspended.
The Court clarified at para 22 of the judgment that any loss sustained by the concessionaire can be raised by the National Highways Authority in an appropriate manner, in accordance with law, if they are otherwise entitled to claim. Therefore, we order that the collection of user fees shall be suspended forthwith for four weeks, and we further order that the Central Government shall take appropriate decisions within the above period addressing the concern and grievance of the public highlighted in the meeting of the Chief Secretary.
Appearances:
Petitioner: SMT. O.M.SHALINA,
Respondent: DEPUTY SOLICITOR. GENERAL OF INDIA for R1, SRI.SANTHOSH MATHEW, SENIOR ADVOCATE a/w M/S. NANAVATHI MAULIK.G, ARUN THOMAS, JENNIS STEPHEN & ANIL SEBASTIAN PULICKAL, Advocates for R2, SRI.N.MANOJ KUMAR, STATE ATTORNEY & GOVERNMENT PLEADER for R3, SRI. S SREEKUMAR (SENIOR ADVOCATE) along with M/S. P MARTIN JOSE, P PRAJITH, THOMAS P KURUVILA, HARIKRISHNAN.S, AJAY BEN JOSE, MANJUNATH MENON, HANI P NAIR, GITHESH R, SACHIN JACOB AMBAT & ANNA LINDA V.J., Advocates for R4 and of SRI.A.R.L.SUNDARESAN, ADDITIONAL SOLICITOR GENERAL OF INDIA
