Vinod Kumar Gupta, J. - (1.) Under Section 40 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1948, every owner of a Motor Vehicle is entitled to have his vehicle registered by a Registering Authority in whose jurisdiction either he resides or carries on business. An application for registration of a vehicle accordingly has to be filed in terms of Rule 47 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989. The Respondents vide Memo No. 463/MV dated 13th March, 2000 have rejected the petitioner's application for registration by passing a cryptic order on the basis that since the petitioner's residence is shown in the Electoral Roll of Kanksa Assembly Constituency under Burdwan District instead of Barjora Constituency of Bankura District, his registration application is not maintainable. I have gone through the impugned order and I find that it has been passed on a totally non-application of mind and by grossly misinterpreting Clause 1(e) of Rule 47 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989. I am saying so because Clause 1(e) relates only to furnishing of proof of address by way of a document referred to in Rule 4 (supra). A bare look of Rule 4 suggests that Ration Card, Electoral Roll, L. I. C. Policy, Passport etc. are some of the documents mentioned, which can be relied upon by an applicant only for the limited purpose of furnishing his address. Whether an applicant lives at one place or the other is not the concern of Rule 47 at all. The place of residence or the place of business is a consideration borne out from Section 40 of the Act. Section 40 clearly suggests that the registration of a vehicle shall be effected by a Registering Authority in whose jurisdiction either the applicant resides or has his place of business. If, therefore, an applicant applies to a particular Registering Authority claiming that he would have the vehicle registered there since he has place of business there relying upon Rule 47 (1) (e), such application cannot be rejected. Of course it is open to the Registering Authority to obtain such proof from the applicant by way of establishing that either he resides within the jurisdiction of such Registering Authority or has his place of business there.
(2.) Based upon the aforesaid reasoning therefore, the impugned order is set aside. In the light of the observations herein-above made, the respondents are directed to reconsider the petitioner's application and pass appropriate consequential orders within a period of three weeks from the date of communication of this order.
(3.) The writ application is thus disposed of. Let xerox plain copy of this order countersigned by the Assistant Registrar (Court) be given to the parties.;