A strike by Indian truckers came to a halt late on Tuesday (Jan 2) evening after Indian Home Minister Amit Shah delayed a new hit-and-run law that had sparked protests by truckers across the country, media reported, citing the president of All India Motor. Amrit Lal Madan Transport Congress.
This came after representatives of the truckers met Union Home Minister Ajay Bhalla. All India Motor Transport Congress president Amrit Lal Madan reportedly said, “You are not just our drivers, you are our soldiers… We don’t want you to face any inconvenience… Union Home Minister Amit Shah has served the sentence for ten years and the fine that was imposed has been suspended . No laws will be imposed until the next meeting of the All India Motor Transport Congress is held.”
Union Home Minister Ajay Bhalla said, “We had a discussion with the representatives of the All India Motor Transport Congress, the government wants to say that the new rule has not yet been implemented, we all want to say that before implementing Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 106/2, it will have a discussion with the representatives of the All India Motor Transport Congress and then only we will make a decision.”
However, it is still unclear whether the talks will result in any potential solution or whether the protesters will call off the strikes that began on Monday (January 1) and continued on Tuesday (January 2).
Meanwhile, the Indian government and hauliers have called on truckers to return to work and end the strikes.
To discuss the matter, which is coming after a major overhaul of India’s colonial-era penal laws during the winter session, news agency ANI reported that members of the All India Transport Congress arrived at the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in Delhi.
“There is strictly no nationwide strike called by All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC) in the country and all matters will be resolved amicably. They are meeting Home Minister (Ajay Bhalla) tonight,” PTI news agency had earlier reported. citing official sources.
What do truckers want?
The truckers want the Indian government to roll back its provisions on hit-and-run cases in the new Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), which replaced the old Indian Penal Code (IPC). AIMTC president Amritlal Madan demanded that the government withdraw the controversial provisions.
Under the new law, negligent drivers who cause serious road accidents and flee without informing the police can face up to 10 years in jail or a fine of Rs 7 lakh ($8,400).
As truckers are on strike, nearly 2,000 petrol pumps are without fuel. It causes problems for transport vehicles such as trucks, buses and tankers. The situation is particularly dire in northern India and Hyderabad in the south. Additionally, petrol pumps in the Indian states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Punjab also ran dry due to a surge in demand, reports said citing industry officials.
