The Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) has sought a police investigation into misuse of diplomatic number plates, given exclusively to Foreign Diplomatic Missions in the country.
The misuse of the number plate was detected in a car that was plying as taxi at Parasala on the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border.
State Transport Commissioner Anil Kant took the decision to rope in the police and to initiate a criminal case against the ‘owner’ of the vehicle, Vipin of Aruvallur, Uramvila, Puzhikunnu, after he failed to appear and produce the necessary documents before the officials.
Vehicle seized
The vehicle was seized from the premises of the house of Vipin by the MVD officials following reports that four cars with diplomatic number plates were plying as taxis in Parasala. The cars frequently crossed the State border. The seven-seater car with diplomatic number plate 109 CD 13 was seized by Motor Vehicle Inspector (MVI) Anwar Moideen and Assistant MVI Arun from the backyard of Vipin’s house and shifted to the premises of the Sub-RTO office, Parasala, on Saturday.
Lettering of plate
Vehicles belonging to foreign consulates bear white lettering on light blue background.
These number plates bear UN, CD or CC, which stand for United Nations, Diplomatic Corps and Consular Corps respectively.
However, in the seized vehicle by the MVD, the lettering of the number plate was in black with white background.
The 109 CD is allotted to the Ambassador of Israel and the Foreign Mission has offices in Delhi and Mumbai only.
The MVD officials got a copy of a paper confirming the issue of the diplomatic number plate by RTO officials of Delhi from the car.
Joint Transport Commissioner Rajeev Puthalath said the MVD officials were preparing the mahazar for handing over the probe to the police. “We have found that the seized vehicle has not been registered in the State,” he told The Hindu .
The MVD has come to know that three other cars with the same diplomatic number plates were plying as taxies on the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border for the last six months.
Inter-State racket?
The MVD suspect an inter-State involved in the purchase of the vehicles from Delhi and sales in other Statest. The law enforcers do not check the vehicles of foreign missions even during the special drives as they enjoy diplomatic immunity like the consular staff. They are also exempted from paying tax and toll.
