Popular Marathi actor and NCP’s Shirur MP, Amol Kolhe, took to 'X' (previously called Twitter) on Saturday, criticising the current state government by raising questions about the traffic police. He referred to it as the “triple-engine government, triple recovery,” targeting the Mumbai Traffic Police for their approach to traffic fine collection. In response to Kolhe’s tweet, the MTP stated that his vehicle has an overdue amounting to 15 e-challans, totaling ₹16,900.
In a tweet, Kolhe shared, “I experienced something very shocking. A lady police officer from the Mumbai Traffic Police stopped my car and asked to pay the fine online. While checking her mobile, I saw a message in the form of an order that said ₹25,000 to be collected from at least 20 vehicles.” He then criticised the government and the traffic police for this behavior.
Traffic police responds
Hours later, MTP responded to Kolhe’s tweet on Twitter, stating that his vehicle has 15 pending e-challans spread across the state of Maharashtra, including Mumbai, Satara, Navi Mumbai, and Highway Police jurisdiction, from 2019 to 2023. Most of the violations are related to overspeeding and jumping signals, the tweet added, noting that ₹16,900 is pending to be paid by Kolhe.
The traffic authorities further elaborated in their tweet, saying, “Out of these, 12 e-challans are for your vehicle for not following the prescribed speed limit, and regarding the same, several messages have been sent to your (Kolhe's) mobile number. We request you to pay your dues.”
Later, MTP shared fresh data of e-challans issued by them in the Mumbai jurisdiction from 2019 to the present. In 2019, over 18 lakhs e-challans were issued, with a compensation fee of ₹59,70,97,225. In 2020, the total e-challans dropped to 14 lakhs due to COVID-19, with a total fee of ₹41,99,90,619. In 2021, 37 lakhs e-challans were issued, with the penalty amount totaling ₹1,12,92,68,753. Similarly, in 2022, 33 lakhs e-challans were issued with a penalty amount of ₹1,59,47,65,201. As of November 2023, 36 lakhs e-challans have been issued, worth a total of ₹2,05,83,76,500.
Traffic police officials stated, “A fine of ₹205 crores has been recovered from motor vehicle rule offenders till 30/11/2023, which is ₹46 crores more than the fine recovered in 2022,” and added, “Citizens are requested to follow Traffic Rules to make the commute safer for everyone.”
