Action against vehicles flashing caste names in Uttar Pradesh

LUCKNOW: UP transport department has issued an order to all its RTOs, ARTOs and enforcement officers to take necessary action under the MV Act against vehicles that are found on road with the caste of the owner displayed on the number plate. The order has been issued by additional transport commissioner (administration), Mukesh Chandra tagging a letter which was addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Integrated Grievance Redressal System (IGRS) and which said that displaying caste-based names on number plates is a trend in UP and many other states. REMOVE ADS The letter written by Harshpal Prabhu from Maharashtra on December 4 said “it’s a superiority complex” and should be checked “to stop caste-based crime.” As this letter went viral with news reports that UP transport department has issued an order for ‘seizure of vehicles flashing caste names on their number plates’, Regional Transport Officer, Lucknow, Ramfer Dwivedi, told TOI that anything inscribed on the number plate is already an offence under the Motor V Act which attracts a penalty of Rs 500 first time and Rs 1,500 on subsequent offence. “There is no law to seize the vehicle as of now,” he added. “It is not a new order as writing anything on the number plate beyond the registration number is already an offence under MV Act. The order is to reinforce the provision. The number plate should only display the number in defined font so that it is clearly visible like we have in HSRP,” said Chandra, who issued the order. The caste is displayed to glorify it, said Prabhu’s letter adding that such glorification must be stopped as it can lead to rivalry, which can create law and order situation in the state. EXPLORE BRIEFS NEWS IN BRIEF Your one-minute news catch up Trump and US on edge as Democrats on verge of trifecta The yet-to-be certified results, which strengthened the hands of the Democratic Party and is a setback to President Donald Trump and his insurgent supporters who continue to ply bogus charges election fraud, came even as a joint session of the US Congress convened in the capital to formally recognize Joe Biden as the country’s 46th President. ‘Migratory birds reason behind spread of bird flu in India’ The Centre has issued an advisory to the state on the spread of bird flu in the country, said Union minister of fisheries, animal husbandry and dairying Giriraj Singh on Wednesday, adding that the virus has returned to India with migratory birds. Modi ‘earned and achieved’ prime ministership: Pranab in memoir The decisive mandate the BJP got in two consecutive general elections in 2014 and 2019 indicated voters’ preference for political stability, according to late former president Pranab Mukherjee, who said Narendra Modi “earned and achieved” the prime ministership. He said that Narendra Modi became PM “through popular choice” unlike Manmohan Singh “who was offered the post by Sonia Gandhi”. What SC said on notional income for homemakers In a significant ruling, the Supreme Court has said that fixing notional income of homemakers in compensation related cases is a signal to the society that the law and the courts value their labour, services and sacrifices. Another nationwide vaccine dry run to be held on Jan 8 Ahead of the roll-out of coronavirus vaccine in few days, another dry-run will be conducted across the country on January 8. On January 2, almost all states and Union territories conducted dry run at 285 session sites spread across 125 districts to assess ability and readiness of authorities to administer shots to hundreds of millions of people, including many in remote corners of the country. Centre deploys teams to bird flu-hit districts of Kerala, Haryana The Union health ministry said it has deployed multi-disciplinary teams to avian influenza-affected Alappuzha and Kottayam districts of Kerala, and Panchkula district of Haryana. On Monday, avian influenza (H5N8) in samples of duck carcasses from Alappuzha and Kottayam districts in Kerala was notified by the animal husbandry department. GO TO BRIEFS After the letter was received, the transport department will check vehicles plying in the state and take action against those flouting norms. Additional chief secretary, Information, Navneet Sehgal, told TOI: “There is no new order of seizure of vehicles displaying caste and name, there is already a law which operates to challan vehicles that use such number plates,” he said. Similarly, Uttar Pradesh Transport Commissioner, Dheeraj Sahu told TOI that the letter on social media in connection with the case has been misinterpreted. “There is no word on seizure of vehicles having caste and names inscribed on number plates,” he said.