Bihar transporters' body announces strike on Oct 2 to protest

The state transport association today announced a one-day strike on Gandhi Jayanti to protest the arrest of over a dozen owners, drivers and carriers across Bihar after seizure of liquor from other people on board their vehicles.
"Trucks, buses, tempo and other four-wheeled public carriers would keep off the road on October 2 next to protest the draconian provision in the new Excise law," Bihar Motor Transport Federation president Uday Shankar Prasad Singh said after a meeting of its office bearers here.
More than four dozen buses and trucks have been impounded in different police stations in the state on this ground, he claimed.

"The family of the those arrested are shattered. The transporters are feeling insecure," he said.
The Transport Federation chief said they were in support of prohibition but protest the "draconian" provision of arrest of driver and vehicle owners in the event of seizure of liquor from the vehicle.
He said 1.25 lakh truckers, 40,000 bus owners and its employees, 25,000 carriers of four-wheeler and nearly one lakh tempo owners would keep the vehicles off the road on October 2 in protest.
"The officials of buses, tempo and taxis do not have the permission to search a passenger carrying liquor bottle in their luggage and in such a condition how come an owner or driver be held responsible and arrested?" the Federation chief asked in a statement.

"In the event of seizure of liquor from a train, why its owner (the Union government) is not arrested?" he and other office bearers asked.