Police say such incidents to be treated as criminal cases and perpetrators to be booked under Goonda Act
Park your vehicle on the road at night at your own risk, as cases of vehicles being set ablaze by miscreants has seen a sharp rise in recent past, with more than 150 incidents of such arson being reported in the last two years.
According to the city police, more than 100 vehicles, including cars and two-wheelers, were set ablaze in 2014. This when 30 such cases were registered in 2013, and the figure for 2012 was in single digit.
Police have taken the rise in such incidents seriously and said strict action will be taken against those indulging in such cases of arson.
Earlier, such cases were considered as accidental and even the vehicle owners thought so, but now we are taking them up as criminal cases and investigating to nab the culprits, Additional commissioner of police (law and order) Alok Kumar said.
"We have booked around seven such miscreants under the Goonda Act. We have opened rowdy-sheets against others who have been involved in burning vehicles and if they continue with their act, they will be booked under the Goonda Act where they will be in the jail for a year," he said.
Police have given three reasons for what may seem like a random act of vandalism.
Fuel thieves burn the vehicle in disappointment when they don't find sufficient fuel in it; mischievous characters roaming at night under the influence of alcohol and drugs set fire to vehicles just for fun and escape; and if people have disputes against someone, they vent it by setting their vehicles ablaze in revenge.
Kumar said, "Whatever the reason is, burning of vehicles will not be tolerated. The Deputy Commissioner of Police of the respective divisions have been asked to visit the spot during such incidents without fail and file a criminal case."
Bike set ablaze
In the latest such incident, unknown miscreants set ablaze a bike that was parked outside a house on seventh cross, Jai Javan Nagar in Banaswadi on Sunday night. The bike belonged to Kamal Singh, a subedar in the Army. On Sunday night around 1 am, Singh noticed smoke outside his house. He ran out of the house to find that some miscreants had set fire to his bike which was parked in front of his residence. A complaint was filed with the Banaswadi police regarding the arson.
Section 435 IPC says
Mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to cause damage to amount of one hundred or (in case of agricultural produce) ten rupees.Whoever commits mischief by fire or any explosive substance intending to cause, or knowing it to be likely that he will thereby cause, damage to any property to the amount of one hundred rupees or upwards 1[or (where the property is agricultural produce) ten rupees or upwards], shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.
Park your vehicle on the road at night at your own risk, as cases of vehicles being set ablaze by miscreants has seen a sharp rise in recent past, with more than 150 incidents of such arson being reported in the last two years.
According to the city police, more than 100 vehicles, including cars and two-wheelers, were set ablaze in 2014. This when 30 such cases were registered in 2013, and the figure for 2012 was in single digit.
Police have taken the rise in such incidents seriously and said strict action will be taken against those indulging in such cases of arson.
Earlier, such cases were considered as accidental and even the vehicle owners thought so, but now we are taking them up as criminal cases and investigating to nab the culprits, Additional commissioner of police (law and order) Alok Kumar said.
"We have booked around seven such miscreants under the Goonda Act. We have opened rowdy-sheets against others who have been involved in burning vehicles and if they continue with their act, they will be booked under the Goonda Act where they will be in the jail for a year," he said.
Police have given three reasons for what may seem like a random act of vandalism.
Fuel thieves burn the vehicle in disappointment when they don't find sufficient fuel in it; mischievous characters roaming at night under the influence of alcohol and drugs set fire to vehicles just for fun and escape; and if people have disputes against someone, they vent it by setting their vehicles ablaze in revenge.
Kumar said, "Whatever the reason is, burning of vehicles will not be tolerated. The Deputy Commissioner of Police of the respective divisions have been asked to visit the spot during such incidents without fail and file a criminal case."
Bike set ablaze
In the latest such incident, unknown miscreants set ablaze a bike that was parked outside a house on seventh cross, Jai Javan Nagar in Banaswadi on Sunday night. The bike belonged to Kamal Singh, a subedar in the Army. On Sunday night around 1 am, Singh noticed smoke outside his house. He ran out of the house to find that some miscreants had set fire to his bike which was parked in front of his residence. A complaint was filed with the Banaswadi police regarding the arson.
Section 435 IPC says
Mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to cause damage to amount of one hundred or (in case of agricultural produce) ten rupees.Whoever commits mischief by fire or any explosive substance intending to cause, or knowing it to be likely that he will thereby cause, damage to any property to the amount of one hundred rupees or upwards 1[or (where the property is agricultural produce) ten rupees or upwards], shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.
