New Delhi: Fuel pumps in several states are witnessing long queues over the past couple of days. No, this is not a rush to fill up tanks before prices go up. This is panic buying amid apprehensions that the truckers’ protest against the soon-to-be-implemented criminal code will hit supply. If the protest drags on, it may hit supply of other essential supplies too.
Protests have broken out in several states, including Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar, Punjab, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, against the high penalties for hit-and-run accidents in Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which is set to replace the colonial-era Indian Penal Code.
Drivers of thousands of tankers that transport fuel to pumps are part of the protest. With them joining the strike, fuel crisis has already gripped several cities and other urban centres fear a similar situation in the coming days. An association of petrol pump dealers in Aurangabad have said fuel pumps in the district may go dry by Tuesday.
Tyres were burnt and roads blocked in Patna as truck operators raised slogans against the new law, questioning who will feed their families if they stay in jail for 10 years. In Navi Mumbai, a group of truckers attacked a policeman early this morning. The cops had to use force to disperse the mob on Mumbai-Bengaluru highway, PTI reported.
Drivers on Monday launched a three-day protest, blocking highways and several other key roads across the country. Not only have the protests led to traffic jams but fears that fuel may soon run out has prompted citizens to rush to their nearest petrol pump.
The truck drivers are voicing dissent against the hit-and-run law in the new Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the criminal code that will replace the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The new law has raised the penalty in road accident cases to up to 10 years. In the Indian penal code, accidentally killing a person in a road accident had a maximum jail term of 2 years.
“Whoever causes the death of any person by doing any rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine,” states the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
If the offender escapes or fails to report the incident immediately, the imprisonment term can extend up to ten years, along with a fine of ₹ 7 lakh.
The protesting truck drivers believe that the new law is draconian and biased against larger vehicles.
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