Kerala - Kochi   

Police directive arbitrary: lawyers

KOCHI: The decision of the police to permit government vehicles alone through the South Overbridge during morning hours, while banning the movement of four-wheelers, is arbitrary and does not stand the test of law, according to legal experts.

There cannot be any discrimination between government vehicles and private vehicles and the police are not free to choose the vehicles according to their whims and fancies, said G. Mohanraj, lawyer.

The Motor Vehicle (MV) Act does not recognise any special treatment to government vehicles. The Act is equally applicable to government and private vehicles. By discriminating between government and private vehicles, the police are violating the legal principle of equality before the law, he said.

According to P.P. Pratapan, senior lawyer, the police are trying to implement a law that is not in existence. The directive of the police to four-wheelers to move along Panampilly Nagar and Atlantis and not to enter the South Overbridge during morning hours cannot be justified and does not come under the reasonable restrictions that authorities can implement, he said.

The move to charge co-passengers for abetment while booking the driver for drunk driving also came under severe attack from the legal fraternity.

Abetment as defined in the Indian Penal Code cannot be used to proceed against those who commit offices under the Motor Vehicle Act, Mr. Pratapan said.

For drunk driving, the person who commits the offence alone can be booked and there is no provision in the MV Act for booking a co-passenger. The law enforcers cannot misinterpret the provisions of law to suit their whims and fancies, he said.

The police can never book any other co-passenger for abetment in case of drunk driving and only those who are found under the influence of alcohol, while driving, can be booked, the lawyer said.

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