Reckless driving: MLA wants government to crack the whip

Aditi Jagtap, the Pune girl whose reckless driving injured ten people on Tuesday, got bail a day after committing the crime. In the light of a rise in incidences of drunken and reckless driving, Vile Parle MLA Krishna Hegde has demanded stricter legal action against the offenders. He has written letters to the central and state governments, requesting them to make necessary amendments to the law.

In his letters to Veerappa Moily and Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, the law and judiciary ministers at the Centre and state levels respectively, Hegde said, “There have been several cases of people driving their cars late in the night when they are under the influence of alcohol. These culprits often are people having a high profile and they get away on bail in spite of killing innocent pedestrians as well as other motorists. I want to request the government that such cases should be taken very seriously, and the culprits should not be granted bail.”

Hegde has also demanded that special fast track courts be set up to hear such cases. “Unless the law is made stricter and punishment more severe, such high-profile culprits will continue to take advantage of the lenient norms. The overall layout of the Motor Vehicle Act needs to be made more stringent. Mere cancellation or suspension of the driving licence and imposition of a fine is not enough,” Hegde told DNA.

According to criminal advocate Satish Borulkar, most offenders get bail since the offences are categorised as ‘rash and negligent driving’. “There was an attempt made to change the offence to ‘culpable homicide, not amounting to murder’ in the cases of Salman Khan and Alistair Pereira. However, the higher courts refused to acknowledge the change. A strong amendment in the Indian Penal Code is essential,” said Borulkar.