Minors to be charged if caught driving

Parents will be tried in the magistrate and the kids in juvenile court

The names of minors who are caught driving will now be included in the chargesheets filed by the traffic police. The minors will be prosecuted in a Juvenile Court, while their parents will be prosecuted in a Magistrate Court.

The traffic police will enclose the Aadhaar details of the driver and owner of the vehicle along with the charge sheet so that the judge is informed of their violations and traffic discipline history. The judge will decide whether to send the minor to a juvenile home or ask him or her to pay a fine. Meanwhile, the minor’s parents will have to appear before a Magistrate and may be sent to judicial remand.

This month, in a first-ofits-kind judgement, a 14year-old was remanded in a juvenile home for one day. A Magistrate Court sent 10 parents to prison for a day, because they had let their minor children drive.

The Court also imposed a penalty of `500 on each of the parents under Section 180 of the Motor Vehicle Act.

A.V. Ranganath, the Deputy Commissioner of Police — Traffic (South Zone), said, “If minors are caught driving, their parents’ names are mentioned in the chargesheet filed by the traffic police. Such minors are produced before a Juvenile Court, and their parents are produced before a Magistrate. While the parents or vehicle owners are sent to judicial remand, the minors are sent to juvenile home. Cops catch about 30 minor drivers in the age group of 14 to 17 years every month in Hyderabad.”

The Hyderabad Traffic police are launching special drives at a number of location in the city to keep a check on minors driving.