HYDERABAD: A nexus between an RTA official, a motor vehicle broker, and a bike mechanic exposed the process of procuring Registration Certificates (RC) for scrap bikes without proper physical examination. As many as 15 Royal Enfield Bullet bikes and two rare Yamaha 350 cc vehicles, along with 25 RC’s have been seized by the Gandhinagar police. Five persons, who indulged in the offence were arrested.
‘Old is Gold’ seems to be the mantra that the accused Hitesh Patel, a broker, has employed. Taking advantage of the demand for older variants of Royal Enfield and Yamaha motor cycles in the city, he used to buy condemned/scrap vehicles in auctions for Rs 28,000 and sell the same for Rs 35,000 to prospective buyers in Hyderabad and Secunderabad. Following the purchase, Patel used to arrange for an original RC and related documents for Rs 35,000. A Vittal Rao, an RTA official, by paying huge sums of money to the South Zone RTA officials, used to procure RCs and related documents to buyers at an additional price of Rs 20,000 to Rs 30,000, the police informed.
The process has made it convenient for buyers to skip physical examination of their vehicle, besides a host of other verification processes required to present to the RTA officials in the view of purchasing a scrap vehicle. Later, Patel used to tag the buyer to a Michal Modi, a mechanic, who would rewrite the chassis number and engine number on the chasis to accommodate the new RC. For the work, Modi charged Rs 20,000 to Rs 30,000. The police have also seized a vehicle that is being used by Modi.