Send Drunk & Rash Drivers to 10 years in Jail: Law panel

TNN

NEW DELHI, Jun 10: Finally, there is a serious effort to discipline our traffic. The Law Commission has prepared a report on traffic discipline that sets down stringent penalties and exacting norms to straighten out India's notoriously indisciplined roads.

The Commission report has recommended a crackdown on drunken, rash and negligent driving by proposing that the maximum jail term for death caused by drunk or rash driving should be enhanced from two to 10 years. If the proposal is accepted, drunken or careless driving may become as much of a no-no in India as it is in the West.

While this is possibly the most dramatic recommendation made by the Commission, headed by Justice A R Lakshmanan, there are a number of others that aim to make public transport more secure, heighten surveillance on roads, discourage distractions to drivers like cellphones or giant hoardings, and, generally speaking, minimise risks to public safety.

Among the other recommendations are positioning cameras on all major intersections and arterial roads in cities, doing away with speed breakers and hoardings on highways, intensive patrolling to deter drunken driving and use of mobiles while driving, and mandatory speed governors in city buses.

"I am giving the final touches to the recommendations which would address a lot of questions being asked by public about the leniency in legal provisions on rash and negligent driving," Justice Lakshmanan told TOI.

By pitching for a zero tolerance regime against rash, negligent or drunk driving, the Commission has effectively sought to transform the nature of the offences — from a minor infringement to a serious crime and a huge risk to public safety.

At present, in a majority of rash or drunken driving cases, the offender is booked by the police under Section 304A of the Indian Penal Code. The provision says: "Whoever causes the death of any person by doing a rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide (murder), shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years or with fine, or both."

The Commission has also suggested that cameras be placed at strategic positions on major roads in every city so that the police can track down the offender.

While the footage would make it difficult to tamper with evidence, the realisation of having been caught on the camera may deter drivers from running away after an accident and instead encourage to help the injured, if only to minimise his culpability.

The Commission feels that hoardings are a major distraction for drivers and that speed breakers are major impediments in the smooth flow of traffic. It also believes that most accident deaths on city roads are because of overspeeding by contract carriages or state government buses.

"No city transport bus be allowed to ply without being fitted with speed governors," it has recommended. Most buses plying in cities are not insured for accidents, resulting in long litigation by the kin of the deceased for compensation.

The Commission has, therefore, recommended that every corporation or government bus must be insured for third-party accident claims so that in case of a death due to rash and negligent driving, the kin of the deceased are not left to wage a long legal battle to claim compensation.

The Commission feels lax policing is one of the main reasons for rash and negligent driving and has asked for constant drives against drunk driving.

It has also recommended strict action, even seizure of vehicles using cooking gas (LPG) cylinders as a substitute for fuel. This would, however, not affect those vehicles plying with company-fitted LPG kits.