Road Transport Act 2018: Changes afoot to protect vehicles, workers from mobs

After a road crash, mobs often vandalise and torch vehicles and beat up drivers they deem responsible. The government is now going to make such activities punishable under the Road Transport Act 2018.

On March 13, the cabinet meeting, presided over by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her office, approved in principle the amendments to the Road Transport Act 2018, said officials concerned.

"Yes, such activities will be made punishable offences under the act. However, the punishment for the offence has not been determined yet," ABM Amin Ullah Nuri, secretary of Road Transport and Highways Division, told The Daily Star yesterday.

Such offences are also punishable under the penal code.

Parliament passed the Road Transport Act 2018 only five and a half years ago but following demands made by transport workers' and owners' bodies, the government is now reducing punishments and fines in over a dozen sections of the act and apparently adding punishments in sections to protect vehicles and transport workers.

After the March 13 meeting, Cabinet Secretary Mahbub Hossain said 12 sections of the act would be amended but officials at the Road Transport and Highways Division said the number would be higher.

For instance, section 119 of the act says that nobody can harm a vehicle involved in an accident and people cannot be violent towards the driver or conductor of a vehicle involved in a crash.

It said passengers of a vehicle involved in an accident or onlookers must not be involved in any activity that goes against public order.

The section also said under the banner of no organisation, passengers and vehicles can be harmed and activities that go against public order can be carried out.    

However, there was no punishment mentioned in the section, an official of the Road Transport and Highways Division told this correspondent.

The official said provisions for punishments would be included in the amendment as per the instruction of the prime minister.

According to the official, their proposal for punishments may include jail terms or fines.

The official said their proposals would be sent to the law ministry for vetting this week and that they would send the proposals to the cabinet division once they get those back from the law ministry.

Once the cabinet approves the proposals, the amendments would be sent to parliament for passing, the official said.