Supreme Court of Mauritius, 30 mars 2026, 2026 MBG 14 – Police v PARVEZ KODABACCOSS

1 Police v PARVEZ KODABACCOSS

2026 MBG 14

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF GRAND PORT

In the matter of: Cause Number: 2108/22 POLICE v PARVEZ KODABACCOSS

JUDGMENT 1. The Accused stands charged with the offence of Driving Without Due Care and Attention in breach of Sections 123C (1)(a), 52 and 2 nd

Schedule of the Road Traffic Act. The date of the alleged offence is 11.10.17.

2. He pleaded not guilty and was represented by Me Aullybocus at trial stage.

3. The case for the prosecution was conducted by SI Kistamah.

CASE FOR THE PROSECUTION 4. In furtherance of its case, the prosecution produced two certificates from the National Transport Authority which were marked as Doc A and Doc B, respectively as well as a plan drawn by Witness No.3 which was marked as Doc F.

5. The first prosecution witness to take the stand was PC 7374 Pentiah, who produced a report which he drew after having examined both vehicles involved in the accident. The reports were marked as Doc C and Doc D, respectively. He was cross examined during which he stated that he could not enlighten on the point of impact.

6. Witness No. 1, PS 3037 Groochun, produced a defence statement which he recorded under caution from the Accused. The document was marked as Doc E. He was cross examined during which he stated that he could not remember whether the collision occurred near a speed camera, the speed limit was 60km/h, the point of impact as shown by both drivers is at the middle of the road, there are debris on the right side, Point B shows the position of the road and it is inclined to the right. Point A is also inclined to the right. He was re-examined during which he stated that at Point B, the line is interrupted and at Point A, there is a white line and one cannot overtake at that spot. The private van was more inclined to the right.

7. Witness No.4, Mr Mohammud Nazim Ally Peerbux, testified under oath and stated that on the material day, he was driving at Union Park and he had to turn to the right towards an area of plantation. He put his indicator indicating to the right. A lorry came and knocked against his vehicle, He stopped and noted that the left side of the lorry knocked against the right side of his vehicle. His vehicle was damaged. At the time of the accident, there was no rain. He showed the police the spot of the accident.

8. He was cross examined during which he stated that he has worked as a driver for ten years, he is not familiar with the place of Union Park, he was driving at a speed of 15 km/h, he had already started swerving, he did not park his vehicle, he maintained that his right indicator was on, and there were three women in his vehicle.

9. During Re-examination, he stated that he works at Union Park and is therefore familiar with the area.

CASE FOR THE DEFENCE 10. The Accused made a statement from the dock that the van of the witness was parked, he put his indicator to overtake and suddenly the witness swerved to the right and they collided.

SUBMISSIONS 11. Defence Counsel did not offer submissions.

THE LAW 12. 123C. Driving without due care or reasonable consideration (1) Any person who drives a motor vehicle on a road or other public place (a) without due care and attention; or … shall commit an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine of not less than 5,000 rupees nor more than 15,000 rupees and to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months.

ANALYSIS 13. The principle of the presumption of innocence is enshrined in Section 10(2) of our Constitution. This concept is further embedded in our criminal law through the ‘Golden Thread’ principle which essentially confirms that the burden is on the prosecution to prove its case beyond any reasonable doubt- Woolmington v Director of Public Prosecutions [1935] AC 462 (HL).

14. In the present matter, the prosecution has to prove that the Accused departed from the standard of care and skill that in the particular circumstances of the case would have been exercised by a reasonable, prudent and competent driver, and the test is an objective one – MOHUN L. v THE STATE 2012 SCJ 464

15. I have taken into account all the evidence on record. The point of impact is in the middle of the road. The damage pattern on both vehicles shows that the right side of Witness No.4’s vehicle collided against the left side of the Accused’s vehicle. This shows that the vehicle of Witness No.4 was already swerving to the right. This supports the version of Witness

4 No.4. I also note that this is a version which is undisputed by the Accused. Witness No.4 stated that he put his right indicator on and that he was driving at a speed of 15 km/h. The witness testified in a clear and coherent manner. He was lengthily cross examined during which he maintained his version of event and his credibility was not impugned.

16. I have also noted that as per Doc F that the point of impact is towards the end of an interrupted white line and therefore, while overtaking was permitted, the Accused was nonetheless under a duty to exercise caution before overtaking. Witness No.4 stated that his right indicator was on and he was not driving at a high speed. The facts surrounding the accident show that the Accused failed to exercise due caution as a prudent driver and he continued overtaking despite it was unsafe to do so and while Witness No.4 had already indicated his intention to turn right by putting his right indicator on.

17. I have taken note of the unsworn statement of the Accused that the vehicle of the witness had stopped. However, it is unclear as to why the Accused came to such a deduction inasmuch as he did not mention that the left indicator of the vehicle of the Accused was on as was suggested by defence counsel during cross examination. He has failed to shed doubt on the sworn version of Witness No.4 on a balance of probabilities.

18. In light of the above, I therefore find that the Accused drove without due care and attention and I find the Accused guilty as charged.

BFS PAUROBALLY Acting District Magistrate This 30 th March 2026

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