The Lahore High Court on Friday ordered the government to arrest all those driving on roads without having a valid licence.
Justice Ali Zia Bajwa of LHC was hearing a petition to invoke the Section 302 in the case related to the tragic car accident which killed six members of a family in Lahore.
Chief Traffic Officer, SSP Operations and Additional Advocate General Punjab appeared before the court on Friday.
“How many people have driving licences in Lahore,” Justice Bajwa questioned during the proceeding. The CTO informed the court that there were 7.3 million registered vehicles in Lahore but only 1.3 million people had driving licences.
The court grilled the officers and asked about the crackdown launched against the drivers without valid licence.
“As many as 919 cases have been launched so far against the drivers without licence,” the CTO said while adding that 1.4 million learner driving licences were issued this year. The police apprised the court that Afnan, the main suspect involved in the accident, didn’t have the driving licence. The police decided to arrest the owner of vehicle and raids are being conducted to arrest Afnan’s father.
The court observed that a vehicle could not be registered without a driving licence as per a ruling of LHC in 2018.
Later, Justice Bajwa gave a ruling to depute additional police force on the traffic signals to arrest the underage drivers. The court ordered to launch indiscriminate crackdown on the drivers without valid licences.
Meanwhile, Caretaker Punjab Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi has ordered crackdown on underage drivers across Punjab.
The development follows after a six members of the same family were killed in a road crash in Lahore by an underage driver, last week.
Naqvi has ordered strict action against underage drivers without any discrimination. In this context, IG Punjab, CCPO and all RPOs have been ordered to submit a daily report on the action against underage drivers in the province.
Underage drivers pose risks not only to themselves but also to others. He also urged the parents not to allow their underage children to drive vehicles or motorbikes.
