The Supreme Court ruled that a Reach Stacker — a heavy container-handling machine operating within Inland Container Depots — does not qualify as a 'motor vehicle' under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. Consequently, accident victims injured by such machinery cannot invoke the jurisdiction of Motor Accident Claims Tribunals. The Court reasoned that Reach Stackers are not adapted for use on public roads, which is the definitional threshold under Section 2(28) of the MV Act.

This ruling turns on the statutory definition of 'motor vehicle' under Section 2(28) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, which defines it as 'any mechanically propelled vehicle adapted for use upon roads.' The phrase 'adapted for use upon roads' is the constitutional and statutory pivot. A Reach Stacker is a specialised industrial machine designed exclusively for lifting and moving containers within the enclosed premises of an Inland Container Depot (ICD). It is not registered for road use, does not operate on public thoroughfares, and is not adapted — either by design or modification — for such use.

The Court applied a purposive-cum-literal interpretation: the MV Act's compensation regime, including MACT jurisdiction under Section 166, is triggered only when the vehicle causing the accident falls within the Act's definitional ambit. Because a Reach Stacker fails this threshold test, MACT has no jurisdiction, and victims must seek redress through civil courts or under the Employees' Compensation Act, 1923, depending on the relationship between the victim and the employer.

For CLAT PG, the examiner will test: (1) the exact language of Section 2(28); (2) the distinction between vehicles 'used on roads' versus 'adapted for use on roads'; (3) which forum has jurisdiction when MV Act does not apply; and (4) how courts have previously treated specialised vehicles like cranes, forklifts, and trolleys under this definition. The ruling aligns with earlier precedents where the Supreme Court excluded vehicles not designed for road mobility from the MV Act's protective ambit.