It has been reported that a so-called environmentalist, halted a truck carrying some goats, reported the incident, had the truck impounded, the driver detained, and the goats taken into safe custody, by the police. In a country where even victims of rape and assault often have difficulty registering a complaint/FIR, police were quick to respond and act.
Whether a citizen can abrogate to himself, the power and the authority to stop a vehicle on a public road, whether for appropriate or inappropriate reasons, is a moot point.
Apparently the truck was stopped by him because it was transporting more than the permitted number of animals.
There are designated authorities for performing such duties and it is arguable whether other people can take upon themselves the powers of the regulatory authority.
Imagine the chaos that would ensue if all citizens took it upon themselves to stop vehicles, cars, buses or trains whenever they feel that overloading is happening in or on the vehicle.
Every day public buses in Goa and elsewhere in the country, which under law are permitted to carry only 35 passengers, are routinely packed like sardines with more than 60 people subjecting them to inhuman conditions of travel. Do the authorities or the human rights activists care or act?
Everyday in Mumbai and all over the country, a train meant for 1500 passengers is packed with 5000 or more passengers in inhuman conditions ; many of them hanging on to the outside of the train in their desperation to reach their destination on time. As per Western Railway statistics, every day approximately 15 of these passengers fall off the train and die, more than 3500 a year. Six million passengers are subjected to these inhuman conditions each day in Mumbai alone. For fifty years or more, nobody has given a second thought to this human abuse. Children’s school buses are packed beyond their permitted capacity, leading to terrible and fatal accidents. Two-wheelers often carry 3, 4, 5 persons in violation of the rules, and nobody seems concerned.
It is sad times for our country when the life and safety of human beings carries much less weight than the safety and comfort of animals.
Is this the type of nation that we wish to build?
