Man on cycle ‘challaned’ for dangerous driving!

Surat: While hundreds of commuters break traffic rules with impunity daily, a 47-year-old daily wage labourer on bicycle found himself on the wrong side of the law when he was a court challan for riding on the wrong side on national highway-53 on Thursday.
Rajbahadur Yadav, a migrant worker in a textile unit, was caught by the traffic cop near Gabheni crossroads close to Sachin GIDC on the highway. Ironically, the challan issuing cop wrongly cited The Motor Vehicle Act instead of the Gujarat Police Act. The challan shows offence under section 184 of MV Act - driving dangerously. Senior officials later confessed that the section mentioned is wrong.
“I was going to work on my bicycle and was on the wrong side near Gabheni crossroad when the traffic cops stopped me. They issued the challan and asked me to appear in court and pay the fine,” said Yadav, a native of Uttar Pradesh who lives in Pandesara area with his family.
Yadav earns Rs 400 per day and is worried about paying the fine as he did not go to work in the first half of the day.
“I don’t know how serious my offence is but I will have to take a day off to pay the fine now. I did not know that even a bicycle rider can be fined like this,” Yadav told TOI.
Yadav’s relative Raj Yadav said, “I have seen for the first time that a bicycle rider is penalized for driving on the wrong side.”
Meanwhile, there was anger against police as the photos of Yadav with challan went viral. But police claim they have been penalizing bicyle riders on this road to prevent fatal accidents.
Traffic police officials also claimed that riding a bicycle on the wrong side is punishable. “A bicycle rider cannot ride on the wrong side and one can be penalised under the GP Act. The action by the cop on duty was correct but the section mentioned is wrong,” said H D Mevada, assistant commissioner of police, traffic.
When asked if police can stop people from going on the wrong side instead of issuing challan, he said, “A large number of people often ride on the wrong side so we have to start penalizing them. It is a dangerous stretch and driving on the wrong side leads to fatal accidents.”