Shahin Akhtar
The Kerala High Court on 27th August, rejected a public interest plea filed by Opposition Leader V.D. Satheesan and Senior Congress MLA Ramesh Chennithala, who had sought a court-monitored inquiry into the Government’s Safe Kerala Project.
The project, which introduced AI-powered cameras across the State to automatically record traffic violations, was challenged on grounds of corruption, privacy violations, and misuse of public funds. However, the Division Bench of Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji found no evidence to support the allegations and said the petitioners had failed to prove any illegality or bad faith in the way the scheme was rolled out.
The Transport Department introduced the Automated Traffic Enforcement System under the Safe Kerala Project with the aim of improving road safety. The system is designed to automatically detect traffic violations, capture photographs of offenders, and issue challans electronically. According to the Government, this initiative is expected to bring down the number of road accidents and promote better traffic discipline.
Satheesan and Chennithala, however, argued that the project was tainted from the start. They alleged that citizens’ sensitive information, including driving licence details, was being handed over to private companies in violation of the Supreme Court’s right-to-privacy ruling in the Justice K.S. Puttaswamy (Retd.) & Anr. v. Union of India & Ors., (2017) 10 SCC 1. They also claimed that only Motor Vehicle Inspectors are legally authorised to impose fines, and outsourcing this power to private operators made the entire exercise unlawful.
The petition further accused the government of favouritism and corruption, pointing out that the initial contract was awarded to KELTRON despite concerns about its capacity, and later subcontracted to private firms under questionable circumstances. They also alleged that both state and central investigative agencies had failed to act because of political influence.
Despite these arguments, the Court held that the petitioners could not produce material evidence to back their claims. It dismissed the plea, effectively giving a green light to the continuation of the AI camera project across Kerala.
Case Name: V D Satheesan MLA & Anr. V. State of Kerala & Ors.
Case No. WP(C) 19992 / 2023
Bench: Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji
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