In wake of rising complaints from the public, Karnataka Home Minister Araga Jnanendra on Friday directed the traffic police to strictly adhere to the towing rules while lifting vehicles from no parking areas in the city. He said their work should not give room for complaints of harassment from the public. The minister on Friday was holding a meeting with the Bengaluru City Police Commissioner Kamal Pant and the Additional Police Commissioner (Traffic) Ravikanthe Gowda, and held discussions. "The traffic police should alert the vehicle owners by blowing sirens and collect only the fee amount prescribed for parking the vehicle at the no-parking area, if the owner is present on the spot before lifting-off the vehicle", Jnanendra was quoted as saying by his office in a release.
Araga Jnanendra said the towing staff should not engage in any arguments with the public during their duties and treat them in a courteous manner. The minister also directed that all care should be taken not to cause any damage to the vehicles during towing. This comes as the traffic police’s towing team had courted controversy on multiple occasions. Many have alleged that some times in their zeal, the staff also tow vehicles even when they are parked legally. These incidents had led to Commissioner Kamal Pant to issue a standard operating procedure for the towing staff. These included that the staff has to take photos/videos of vehicles being parked in non-parking zones before being towed away as evidence. In many instances hapless citizens resort to paying bribes to these staff to get their vehicles back instead of paying the official fine and towing fees.
Many have also complained about how the traffic police in the city is often keen on collecting fines rather than managing the city’s traffic.
(With PTI inputs)