Sanjeev Kumar, a motorist, received an SMS from the Delhi Traffic Police over a violation. He was shocked when he verified the challan and found a picture of a vehicle bearing registration number of his car, overspeeding on Ring Road.
“My car was at a service centre for the past two weeks after it developed some technical problem. I have a Maruti Suzuki Wagon R, but the car bearing similar registration number was a Hyundai Grand i10. It is clear that someone is impersonating my car registration number with a wrong intention. I have reported the case to the traffic police for further action,” said Mr. Kumar.
Random checks
Narendra Singh Bundela, Joint CP (Traffic), said that they have received similar complaints from motorists and they were taking such cases seriously. “If any motorist faces such situation, then he can approach the traffic police and his challan will be cancelled. We are in the process of registering FIRs against motorists using fake number plates. The traffic policemen on the ground have been instructed to randomly check vehicle registration certificates to identify motorists using fake number plates,” said Mr. Bundela.
Several motorists have raised their grievances on Facebook and Twitter and demanded cancellation of challans issued to them.
Different car
Lalit Kaushik, raising the issue on Twitter, claimed that he received challan but the car shown in the system did not belong to him. Another motorist, Nitin, said that he had raised the issue over an incorrect challan with the Delhi Traffic Police several times but all in vain. The issue still remains unresolved.
“I got a challan for the cab that is not in use since lockdown. A cab of a different make, bearing registration number of my cab was seen in the challan sent by the traffic police. It is a serious issue as it is a public transport system and the driver using fake number plate could harm passengers,” said a cab driver, who wished not to be named.
Since the COVID-19 outbreak, the Delhi Traffic Police has moved to e-challan system to avoid any direct contact with motorists. In some cases, vehicle owners are getting challans even after reporting to the Delhi Traffic Police and getting challans removed from the website.
