Remove portraits of leaders fixed in cars facing outside: Madras HC

A division bench comprising Justice N Kirubakaran (since retd) and Justice B Pugalendhi while offering a direction to the effect said, “Though the portraits of the leaders are fixed on the dashboard, those portraits are placed only facing outside with an intention to give a message that the vehicle is possessed or driven by a party man and the police cannot intercept.”

“If anybody wants to admire or display the portraits of leaders, they can fix the portraits facing them inside the vehicle and not outside. Though it is the right of the owners to have portraits, the intention of the owners is only to deter the policemen from discharging their duties,” the bench held.

Also, pointing out that no one has got any right to flout the law or to commit excesses which are not sanctioned by law, the bench said “The act of having flags or designation boards or portraits of party/communal leaders or advocate/press stickers is to show that they are privileged sections of the society.”

The bench also recorded the submission of the Director General of Police in such regard that the vehicles with party flags or designation boards or portraits of party/communal leaders or advocate/press stickers are generally flouting the traffic rules and they do not even respect the signals of the policeman.

Based on this, the bench held “It is only in the case of emergency, the ambulance and fire vehicles are allowed to go fast even if there is red signal to save the precious lives and to avoid damage to the properties and not any other vehicles.”

The bench through another direction directed the Transport authorities to check whether lights in vehicles are fixed with in accordance with the rules at the time of registration of the vehicle or at the time of issuance of the FC.

Similarly, the bench while seeking the police authorities to randomly conduct vehicle checks to ensure that the lights are fixed only as per the rules and seize the vehicles or remove the lights if it’s in violation of the rules, also sought the authorities to direct the owners of the vehicles to fix the number plate as per the size prescribed in the Motor Vehicle Rules within 60 days.