CHENNAI: From today, it’s compulsory to carry your original driver’s licence if you are taking the wheel. The Madras High Court has refused to order any interim stay on the enforcement of the State government’s earlier decision that motorists must carry the original licence.On August 22, Transport Minister M R Vijayabhaskar announced that from September 1 the new rule would be implemented. The aim was to effectively annul the licenses of offenders, which is currently a hurdle as most drivers carry only photocopies.
When the writ petition from the TN Lorry Owners Federation came up before Justice M Duraiswamy on September 1, the Advocate-General, representing the government, submitted that the new rule would not be enforced till September 5. After recording the undertaking, the judge had tagged the writ petition with two other PILs on the same issue pending before the first bench and posted the matter for further hearing on Monday.
The Chief Justice had earlier wondered what could be the difficulty in carrying the original driver’s licence. The petitioners had argued that carrying originals would increase the risk of theft or loss.
Not the final word
When the case came up in the Madras HC, the first bench headed by the Chief Justice Indira Banerjee declined to order an interim stay on the operation of the new rule. The case would be heard again on Friday