Supreme Court of India · 1962-02-02
THE STATE OF RAJASTHAN vs MST. VIDHYAWATI AND ANOTHER
- Citation / case number
- SC 1958/156
- Court
- Supreme Court of India
- Petitioner
- THE STATE OF RAJASTHAN
- Respondent
- MST. VIDHYAWATI AND ANOTHER
- Author
- SINHA, BHUVNESHWAR P.(),KAPURL.,HIDAYATULLAH, M.,SHAHC.,MUDHOLKARR.
- Bench
- SINHA, BHUVNESHWAR P.(CJ),KAPUR, J.L.,HIDAYATULLAH, M.,SHAH, J.C.,MUDHOLKAR, J.R.
Judgment text excerpt
The Supreme Court held that the liability of the State for tortious acts committed by its servants is equivalent to that of any other employer, as established under Article 300(1) of the Constitution of India. The Court clarified that the relevant provisions for determining this liability are not Articles 294 and 295, but rather Article 300(1) in conjunction with Section 176(1) of the Government of India Act, 1935, Section 32 of the Government of India Act, 1915, and Section 65 of the Government of India Act, 1858. The Court upheld the High Court's decision to decree the suit against the State, affirming that the State of Rajasthan is vicariously liable for the actions of its employee driving the Government jeep at the time of the incident.