Mumbai: A two-wheeler owner has been booked for allegedly using a duplicate vehicle registration number to dodge loan recovery agents. The crime came to fore after a traffic police constable, who was on towing duty, entered the bike's registration number in e-challan machine and found that the details don't match. Later, a case was filed with the Dongri police.
Number belonged to some other motorcycle
In his complaint, traffic constable Vishnu Gavit, 42, said that he was on duty in Dongri area on Wednesday when he spotted a bike stationed in a no-parking zone at Ramchandra Bhatt Marg. Gavit then verified details of the two-wheeler's vehicle registration number on his e-challan machine and discovered that the number belonged to some other motorcycle. When the constable and other towing officials tried to tow the motorcycle, its owner came to the spot and allegedly tried to create a ruckus. Gavit then called the police control room after which a team of cops arrived at the spot and took the vehicle owner to the police station.
During the enquiry, the owner revealed to the police that he had bought the bike on loan and wasn't repaying the instalments. To ensure that loan recovery agents don't take away his vehicle and also to avoid any traffic violation challan, he used a duplicate number plate, the police said. A case has been registered against him under sections 186 (obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 465 (forgery) and 467 (forgery of valuable security, will, etc) of the Indian Penal Code.
Last month, a 55-year-old man had approached the Mankhurd traffic division officials, complaining that someone had been misusing the registration number of his vehicle because of which he had received traffic violation challans of Rs25,000. The traffic police then apprehended a tempo driver from Shivaji Nagar, Govandi for allegedly using the complainant's vehicle registration number plate since past five years to avoid traffic challans.
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