Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra came in support of truckers who are protesting the new penal provisions related to hit-and-run cases. In a post on X, formerly Twitter, she noted the Centre must stop making laws without consultation.
In her post, Ms. Gandhi said, “Drivers are the wheels of our economy and progress. They work with very little money, face various hardships and lead a tough lifestyle. The law and system should be humane towards them.” “Every life is precious. It is the duty of the government to protect everyone. The purpose of the law is to make the life of the common person easy, safe and fair and not to push millions of people towards oppression, extortion, imprisonment and financial bankruptcy,” she said.
The work of making Tughlaqi laws unilaterally, without consultation and without involving the Opposition, should stop, Ms. Gandhi asserted. “Agricultural law against farmers. Labor law against workers. Citizenship law against citizens. Why does this government always make laws against the people?” she asked in another post.
Some truck, bus, and tanker operators went on a strike against the new provisions which call for stringent jail and fine regulations hit-and-run cases under the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita on January 1. The BNS prescribes a maximum of punishment of 10 years or ₹7 lakh fine for drivers who cause a serious road accident by negligent driving and then run away without informing the police or any other authorities in cases of rash and negligent driving, while the punishment for such cases was two years in the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The Centre held talks with the protesting truckers and on Jan. 2, with Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla assuring truckers that any decision on this provision will be taken only after consultation with the All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC). PTI reported that AIMTC representatives said that they will not allow the new laws to be implemented after they met the Home Secretary. “This law has not been implemented yet...we will not allow these laws to be implemented,” AIMTC chairman-organising committee Bal Mankit Singh said. He asked truckers to call off the agitation.
However, panic had set in across India’s northern, western, and central States as truckers stayed off the roads on Jan. 2. Various reports suggest that fuel supply was in short supply in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab on Jan 2. People in Mumbai, Nagpur and Hyderabad made a beeline to fuel stations. Chandigarh administration imposed temporary restrictions on the sale of petrol and diesel at fuel stations in the Union Territory. There were reports of the supply of vegetables was disrupted in New Delhi.
The protest had also turned violent in Rajasthan, where a mob in the Kekri district burnt a police vehicle and pelted stones at security personnel, leaving three injured, according to the police. The incident occurred when a mob started to pelt stones at a police team trying to clear a traffic jam on the Ajmer-Bhilwara highway.
