Motor department, Kerala police to act tough against parents allowing underage driving

KOCHI:  Are you proud of your minor child’s driving skills? Beware! Letting a minor drive on the streets could get you a three-year jail term and a fine of Rs 25,000. The enforcement wing of the motor vehicles department has decided to initiate action against parents who support underage drivers. The move comes in the backdrop of the death of a 17-year-old boy, who sneaked out of his house at night, in a motorcycle accident at TVS junction near Kalamassery on Friday, October 1, 2021. The MVD has intensified enforcement activities across the district to nab such people. 

“Due to a lack of responsibility from the side of parents, several minors are driving vehicles on the road. On interrogating a few minors, we found they were using the vehicles to go to shops and other places. By doing so, they are not just putting their lives at risk but others’ lives too. It is the parents’ responsibility to restrict minors from driving vehicles. If we catch any minor, we will file a case against the parents who could receive a three-year jail term and a penalty of Rs 25,000,” said G Ananthakrishnan, Enforcement RTO, Ernakulam.

He said special squads have been constituted to intensify enforcement activities across the district.  “We have registered a case and slapped a fine of `25,000 against the uncle of a minor after the boy was caught driving a motorcycle. We have also registered a case against the boy under the Juvenile Justice Act. The department can blacklist the minor for several years to get a license,” Ananthakrishnan added.  

“We have restarted night patrolling in city limits. There are some points in the district where minors are found to be involved in the crime. Cases will be registered against the parents and the kids if they are caught,” said Aishwarya Dongre, DCP, Ernakulam. Parents should become more responsible, she added.