Jailed for drinking

The Mumbai traffic police and the city courts are cracking down on drunk drivers. Now, driving under the influence of alcohol can land you in jail. DNA’s Neeta Kolhatkar spoke to people who were detained for a day and some who escaped. Not all of them, however, have learnt a lesson

I vowed to never touch alcohol

Manoj Jaiswal takes contracts for carpentry work. On August 10, after a long day at work, Jaiswal, 33, stopped for a quick drink at a bar near his residence. He had barely started on his journey home from the bar, when traffic policemen armed with breathalysers accosted him. “I had just had one peg, and my residence is only 10 minutes away and I least expected to get caught,” says Jaiswal.

Jaiswal, who tested positive, was arrested for drink-driving and taken to Santa Cruz police station where he was fined Rs3,000 and his two-wheeler was returned. He was also asked to present himself at the nearest court the next day. There, he was handed the “sentence” of a day in police lock-up.

“It was the most embarrassing moment of my life,” says a sheepish Jaiswal. “I never imagined that one day I would actually go to jail. My wife and children got to know about it, as did many of my friends. I swore I would never touch alcohol again.” Jaiswal says he had no clue about a law against drink driving, though he is aware of the Salman Khan and Alistair Pereira cases. Today Jaiswal believes the incident has made him a better person.

I will drink and drive on safe days

Aditya Natarajan loves the feeling of the wind blowing in his face as he drives after a few drinks down. “I can’t describe in words how wonderful it feels,” says the  mediaperson in his 20s. “I don’t speed; I just cruise along.” That’s what he was doing on August 13 — after downing a few pegs of whisky — when the cops caught him.

Natarajan knew he would be docked but, emboldened by alcohol, he tried to reason his way out. “The police used the breathalyser on me and asked how much I drank,” he says. The police slapped a Rs3,000 fine on him, but that only made him more defiant. The next day in court, Natarajan landed up late, paid a part of the fine and bribed the clerk to cancel his day’s arrest warrant. “The judge suspended my licence for six months, but that’s not going to stop me,” says Natarajan. “If I can’t ride my bike, I’ll ride pillion with friends.”

Natarajan clearly feels no remorse. “I feel bad I spent more on the fine than on my drinks,” he says. “But in the last 10 years, I have never been a menace to anyone and will never be, because I don’t drive recklessly.” Asked if his brush with the law has taught him anything, Natarajan adds: “Yes, to drink and drive only on ‘safe’ dates, not on bank holidays or dates that have a national or state significance.”

I will not risk my family name

Anil Tiwari found out the hard way that a high-profile address cannot save him from the law. Tiwari, 24, a techie whose parents are the personal staff of a minister, lives on the premises of the latter’s Malabar Hill bungalow. On August 11, when Tiwari was caught by the traffic police for drink-driving - he and his friends were celebrating the festival of gatari - he was scared to give his address. “I am lucky they didn’t realise whose bungalow it was,” he says. “That one wrongdoing could have attracted a lot of negative  publicity for both my family and the minister.”

Tiwari’s friends say he is a teetotaller. “My friends insisted on celebrating gatari, so I went along and had just one glass of beer,” he says. “I didn’t realise the police would be so vigilant even on gatari.” He did, however, escape being detained because he had drunk very little - less than what could be detected by the breathalyser. “I knew I had consumed within the allowed limit, so I tried to reason as much with the police.” Tiwari was asked to pay a deposit and take his vehicle from Gamdevi police station.

After he came home, Tiwari shared his experiences with friends in the staff quarters, who advised him to abstain from drinking altogether. “I never want to put my family’s reputation at stake,” he says, of his close shave.

I did feel like a petty criminal

Finance executive Hrithik Sharma was going home to Vakola from an office party in Juhu when he was pulled over. His first reaction was panic-stricken pleading that he had had only one drink, and that he would rather “settle the matter” with the cops. Sharma, 27, however, was asked to cough up Rs3,000 and collect his motorbike from the police station.

But the worse was yet to come. The next day, in Bandra court, the judge pronounced a day’s token arrest for Sharma. “I was shocked,” he recalls. “I was not a murderer to be put in jail. I pleaded with the judge that a day in lock-up would ruin my career, but he said I needed to be taught a lesson.”

Sharma is now trying to forget that day. “It was terribly dirty, and I was sure I’d catch some disease. The only relief was that there were other elite, educated first-timers like me. I felt like a criminal,” says Sharma.

Sharma is vaguely aware of the law preventing drink-driving. He knows there is a permissible limit, but isn’t sure what that is. Asked about the recent hit-and-run cases, Sharma says: “How can you compare those drunk killers to someone like me, who has had only a glass of beer? We are careful, responsible citizens.” The humiliation has been enough of a deterrent. “Next time, I’m going to take an autorickshaw or a taxi.”

I have finally decided to give up drink-driving after being twice lucky

Even though he loves his weekly drinking sessions with buddies, lawyer Thomas Paul has is giving up driving on those days for fear of being caught. “There is a certain pleasure in driving yourself home after a couple of drinks, but only if you have total control over both yourself and the vehicle,” says Paul, 53.

Paul was particularly compelled to give up his wheels on August 4, when he narrowly escaped getting caught by a breathalyser-wielding cops at two check points when he was going home, to Chembur. Paul suspects it has everything to do with his grey hair, and approaching senior citizenship. “I slowed down at the check point, and the police peered into the car, but let me pass,” he says. “I’ve been plain lucky twice. But I don’t want to land in the lock-up at this age, so I’ve stopped taking my car out.

Paul certainly feels strongly about the police drive. Even though the capacity of holding one’s drink differs from person to person, police action against this has been long overdue, he says. “Laws on driving under influence are very stringent the world over,” he says. “They should be in India, too.”

(Some names have been changed on request)