Hyderabad: Background check of drivers must

Hyderabad: The recent arrests of drivers for committing offences involving their employers show that background checks were not being carried out on these people on a regular basis. 

These drivers, who are mostly migrants who join in for a temporary job here, fail to earn sufficient money, and resort to crime. They know their employers’ schedule and that is the first place they target, said a senior official. 

With rising cases of crimes and abduction in the country, it is very important that the identity and credentials of the driver are verified before employing him, said deputy commissioner of police South Zone, V. Satyanarayana. 

“The background verification is a must for cab drivers because the person whom we are hiring must be a trustworthy. Once all the general verification has been done by the employer, they should ask them to produce a detailed report about the driver to them. If the drivers are involved in any criminal case, a police clearance will not be issued and hence they cannot be a cab driver anymore,” said the official. 

In June, the West Zone Task Force team arrested Mohd Mujahed Ali, 33, for cheating people in the pretext of providing them car on lease via an advertisement on OLX.  Officials recovered Rs 1 lakh from his possession. 

In a more recent case, on August 11, two drivers, Yousuf, resident of Hasan Nagar, and Raju, resident of Jiyaguda, stole the car belonging to his ex-employee from Begumpet. 

“It was a planned theft by the duo as they bore a grudge against the man following their termination. On the day of the crime, they followed their previous employer to Begumpet and while he was having breakfast at an eatery, they hotwired it and drove it off from the scene. A complaint was lodged by the owner, following which a team was appointed to check the CCTV cameras and the men were arrested,” said an official from Shah Iniyat Gunj Police. 

According to a senior official of Hyderabad Police, “This verification entails checking a person’s criminal history to assess his or her trustworthiness. In most cases, the verification lists all non-expunged criminal offences and may also include traffic offences such as speeding and drunk-driving. Criminal record check ensures that some additional facts, information and background data on the driver come to the forefront allowing the person to make an informed decision.”