Published 18:24 IST, December 28th 2020
Uttar Pradesh govt pulled up by PMO over complaint on 'caste-stickers' on vehicles
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's office on Friday, directed the Uttar Pradesh government to act on a complaint regarding stickers on cars displaying 'castes
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In a major development, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's office on Friday, directed the Uttar Pradesh government to act on a complaint regarding stickers on cars displaying 'castes'. The complaint letter written by one - Harshpal Prabhu - has demanded the Centre to stop 'glorification of caste on vehicles' and to 'seize such vehicles'. Responding to PMO's request, the Uttar Pradesh transport department has asked its officials to take appropriate action on such cases.
Complaint on Caste stickers on cars
In the letter to the Prime Minister's office, the complainant stated that 'there was a trend in UP of using caste names on number plates of cars'. Stating that such practices of caste-glorification must be stopped, the complainant claimed that it could cause a 'Law and Order' situation. The complainant alleged that the purpose of such caste-based number plates was to show a 'superiority over other castes', who could lead to future caste-based crimes. The Uttar Pradesh police already levy fines on such vehicles as displaying castes on number-plates is illegal in the state.
Laws against caste-based stickers
As per the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988, any kind of graphic on the number plate of vehicles is illegal with a penalty of Rs 5,000. Recently in 2019, the Rajasthan Traffic department passed an order to penalise motorists who display caste, religion, profession, and affiliation to political parties on their vehicles, as per reports. The order was mainly passed to address concerns regarding vinyl on a vehicle’s windscreen - reducing the visibility of the driver. Moreover, the display of caste stickers encourages disharmony in society, leading to caste-based violence.
Recently, AAP has alleged the Yogi Adityanath government of being biased towards Thakurs - the caste to which Adityanath belongs. As per reports, Sanjay Singh conducted a survey on the state’s alleged casteism through pre-recorded voice calls, along with a third-party agency. He claimed that 63% of people surveyed reportedly called the government 'casteist', while only 29% did not. The BJP had done a similar survey during the 2017 Assembly elections against the Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi government, he said. He also alleged that under Adityanath's rule, the Brahmin community was being killed and atrocities were being committed against Maurya, Nishad, Bind, Kashyap, Jaat, Gujjar, Valmiki, Kurmi, Yadav, and other communities in UP. In retaliation, the Uttar Pradesh police have filed FIRs in 13 police stations, closed an AAP office, and slapped a sedition case against Singh.
18:24 IST, December 28th 2020