By IANS,
New Delhi : Drunken drivers be warned: if caught your driving licence could be suspended or even cancelled, according to a Delhi High Court ruling Wednesday.
Accepting the guidelines prepared by the Transport Department, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Ajit Prakash Shah and Justice S. Muralidhar asked the government to notify the guidelines and disposed of the public interest petition.
According to the new guidelines, Delhi Police would take the licence of a driver found to be under the influence of alcohol. A memo would be issued for the driver, who would have to make a representation before the transport department. It would then decide whether his license would be suspended or cancelled.
According to the affidavit, the Delhi government, after consulting the Delhi Police and the Transport Department, had decided to suspend and revoke the driving licences of those persons who drive under the influence of alcohol.
Advocate Anup J. Bhambhani, amicus curiae, submitted before the bench that disqualification of driving licences would be a real, everyday deterrent for those who drink and drive as it would cramp their lifestyle.
The Delhi government’s new excise bill includes a provision for a fine of up to Rs.50,000 for those caught drinking alcohol in public — on roadside, inside cars or outside eateries. Such offenders also face imprisonment without bail.
The new excise bill, which has been approved by the union home ministry, will be presented in the winter session of the Delhi Assembly.