The real winner in the stand-off between the truck drivers of India and the Central government was democracy.
Yet again, the people of India showed how, even in the absence of an Opposition role, voluntary and uncompromising mobilisation can turn the outcome in their favour.
Truck drivers went on a nationwide strike against a new law passed by the Central government. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita contains provisions aimed to curb the ‘hit and run’ syndrome on Indian roads, in particular those involving heavy commercial vehicles.
According to a national report of the ministry of road transport and highways, India has recorded over 4.6 lakh road accidents last year, which translates to an alarming rise of 12 per cent. Each hour, 53 accidents take place and 19 people die. In 2022, 1.68 lakh people died in 4.61 lakh accidents. The number of injuries, including serious injuries, is also inhumanely high, compared to equivalent societies worldwide.
According to the new changes, truck drivers could face a maximum jail term of up to 10 years, besides a hefty fine of Rs 7 lakhs, if a driver causing an accident, or involved in it, were to flee from the accident scene without reporting it. This is a serious upping of the older Indian Penal Code provisions, where the maximum imprisonment was two years.
Drivers’ unions and their leaders, therefore, quickly responded to the bill provisions, deeming the section unacceptable. As per reports, All India Motor Transport Congress organising committee leader Bal Malkit Singh issued a challenge to the government: “Hum ye kanoon laagu nahi hone denge (we will not allow the government to implement this law).” Most drivers’ associations labelled the new provisions kaala kanoon (or black law).
After the opposition by the unions, the strike began, creating a huge impact on supply chains of essential goods in several states, especially fuel and petroleum products. Most impacted were Punjab, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, all politically significant ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
Once thousands of petrol bunks began drying up, people queued up to store up on fuel, and the hoarding run amplified the commotion. As the media and social media began to report long lines for petrol, with several hundreds of petrol stations putting up signs saying “No diesel”, the foundation for nationwide chaos was laid.
The Opposition parties stepped in, with the Congress alleging that “new stringent provisions” would lead to “organised corruption”. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge accused the BJP of “penalising the poor” and MP Rahul Gandhi condemned it, saying “insistence upon making laws without discussion with the affected class and without dialogue with Opposition is a continuous attack on the soul of democracy”.
Anticipating a repeat of the farm laws fiasco, the government submitted gracefully, and once leaders of the AIMTC met officials of the home ministry, the strike got called off, but only after a reprieve was secured by them. The ministry promised drivers there would be no going ahead without consultation.
In the end, it was a quick closure to a potential economy-crippling standoff, and a good lesson for the government to consult with stakeholders more intensely and proactively. Had the clauses of the new law been debated exhaustively in Parliament, this crisis may have never happened.
