'Hindi is national language': SC refuses to transfer case from UP to West Bengal
New Delhi, Aug 4: Observing that Hindi is one of the national languages, the Supreme Court has rejected a plea by an accused in an accident case pending at the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) in UP's Farukkhabad to transfer it to Siliguri in West Bengal on account of language problem.
Justice Dipankar Datta also rejected the submission of the accused that since the accident had taken place in Siliguri in Darjeeling district of West Bengal, it would be expedient for the MACT in Darjeeling to decide the claim petition.
The top court said provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act provide an option to the claimants to approach the MACT within whose jurisdiction they (claimants) reside or carry business or the defendants reside.
Since the claimants have chosen the option to approach MACT, Farrukhabad at Fatehgarh, a forum that law permits them to choose, no grievance can be raised by the petitioner, the court said.
The claimant is a resident of Uttar Pradesh, while the defendant is a native of West Bengal.
"In a country as diverse as India, it is no doubt true that people speak different languages. There are at least 22 official languages. However, Hindi being the national language, it is expected of the witnesses who would be produced by the petitioner before the MACT, Fatehgarh, UP to communicate and convey their version in Hindi.
"If the contention of the petitioner is to be accepted, it is the claimants who would be seriously prejudiced not being in a position to communicate and convey their version in Bengali (if the matter was to be shifted to Siliguri)," Justice Datta said.
The accused had sought transfer on the grounds that the accident had taken place in Siliguri and all witnesses from his side were from there.
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NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
