Offensive sticker on vehicle? Get ready to face legal action in this city

If you are driving a car in Kolkata with offensive and derogatory messages pasted on the vehicle, be ready to face the law. Kolkata Police has issued this warning to vehicle owners in the city, the capital of West Bengal, through a message on its social media handle X (formerly Twitter). Kolkata Police also showed what they meant as ‘offensive, obscene, derogatory messages, posters, or photographs’ with an example. The police said violators could face action under several sections of the Motor Vehicles Act or the newly-introduced Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Kolkata Police took to X to show a car with a message which, it said, was against traffic rules under law and could also lead to defamation case. The sticker on the rear windscreen of a Hyundai vehicle reads ‘Believe a snake, not a girl’. According to the police department, several vehicles in the city are often seen plying around with stickers that could hurt sentiments in line of caste, creed or gender. Besides private vehicle owners, Kolkata Police has also warned public transport vehicles like buses and trucks to refrain from pasting such stickers or messages.

Kolkata Police said, the Hyundai vehicle owner was asked to remove the sticker to avoid defamation case under sections 499 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and 356(i) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). One of the senior officers in the department was quoted by PTI saying, "Displaying obscene, derogatory messages, posters, and photographs that hurt someone's sentiments or relate to caste and creed is not allowed under the Motor Vehicles Act."

Offensive sticker on car? What Motor Vehicles Act says

Under the Motor Vehicles Act, no sticker or message or anything else could be written on pasted anywhere on a car or two-wheeler, including the registration plate. Section 179 (1) of the Motor Vehicles Act prohibits the use of caste and religion-specific stickers and writings on vehicles.

Kolkata Police said the sticker on the Hyundai vehicle caught attention of one their traffic police officers on duty. What he initially took as a humour also appeared to be ful of malice and misogyny. The car owner removed the sticker when Kolkata Police approached him. The police said the vehicle owner understood the intent behind its request to remove the sticker and obeyed.

Similar move was taken by the Uttar Pradesh Police in August last year when the authority started to slap fines on car owners over using caste and religious stickers on their vehicles. Car owners using caste and religious symbols on their cars are being fined ₹1,000 in Uttar Pradesh.

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