Underage Drunk Driving: A Comparative Analysis Of Victim Protection And Compensation

Author: Harman
College: Rajiv Gandhi National University Of Law, Punjab

INTRODUCTION

Drunk driving is now a major issue in India. This is a situation where a person drives any vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Drunk driving or driving under the influence is a criminal offense in India. It can lead to several major accidents and mishaps on the road that will lead to many losses of human lives. This is not only a threat to the person who’s driving under the influence but also to the people who travel daily by road transport. More to this, an underage person or a minor who has not attained the legal age to drive any vehicle or consume alcohol drives under the influence is a major threat that is very common these days. To reduce this many action plans, educational programs, and through policies of minimum legal age to consume alcohol and zero tolerance laws.
Still, underage drinking and driving are fatal in terms of lost lives and huge economic damages. A very important part of this cause is the protection of victims and compensation to the person who sustains damages due to the negligence of minors and their ignorant guardians. No amount of money can bring back lives that are lost because of some minor who was driving while intoxicated. The victims of such accidents face devastating physical, mental, and emotional consequences. This study will give a broader view of the laws, policies, the programmatic approaches of the government, analysis of victim protection, and compensatory programs.

Legal frameworks about underage drunk driving

The Government and the dedicated ministry of roadways have enacted many laws and done several tasks to reduce this increasing issue of minors driving cars or bikes intoxicated heavily. New amendments have been made and laws have been passed such as

Section 185 of the Motor Vehicles Act,1988

According to this section, a person who drives any motor vehicle under the influence of drugs or has in his blood, alcohol exceeding 30 mg. per 100 ml to such extent that he has no control over the vehicle or himself, shall be punishable for the first offense with imprisonment and a fine up to 2000 rs and on the second offense committed within three years of a first offense, with imprisonment for a team of three years, or fine up to 3000 rs.

Section 3 of Motor Vehicles Act,1988

This section of the Motor Vehicle Act,1988 holds that no person shall drive any vehicle without a license authorized by the respective authority to drive such vehicle. If anyone not authorized by the authority or any person who does not have a license is found driving any motor vehicle in any public area shall be punishable for such offense under section 199A of this act and the vehicle shall be confiscated by the police and registration of such vehicle will be canceled for a team of 12 months.

Section 199A of Motor Vehicles Act,1988

According to this section when any offense is committed by a juvenile or a minor, then the guardian of the juvenile or the owner of the vehicle used shall be deemed guilty of the offense and not the juvenile. The guardian of the juvenile then would be punished accordingly unless he can prove to the court that the incident happened without his knowledge or that he has done everything in his power to prevent the commission of the offense. If he cannot prove such then such guardian or owner shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and a fine of Rs25000. The section must not apply when the juvenile has been granted a learner license by the respective authority. Other than that, on the commitment of offense by a juvenile the registration of the motor vehicle shall be canceled for a term of twelve months and the juvenile shall not be eligible to be granted a license until the age of twenty-five years.

Addressing Underage Alcohol Consumption as a Public Health Priority in India

The laws were made to reduce the possibility of underage people getting behind the wheel under the influence of alcohol. This is also a major step towards a safe road environment and reduces the possibility of road accidents happening because of this.
India has the largest population of adolescents globally (253 million people aged 10–19 years), constituting 21% of the population. Additionally, adolescents as young as 13–15 years of age have started consuming alcohol in India. Despite this growing public health problem, the official policy response in India remains primarily focused on AUDs, particularly alcohol dependence in adults, with an absolute disregard for the potential of prevention programs. One potential reason for this is the limited understanding of the onset and progression of alcohol use and AUDs amongst adolescents in India. Alcohol consumption in minors is a concern that is very prominent in India.
Thus, its need to be addressed needs to be the top priority for the Indian Government.

Victim protection and compensation

In today’s time, criminal cases are a race between the state and the accused. In this quest, the actual victim who has incurred damages on himself is ignored in most cases.
The most affected party by underage drunk driving is not the person who’s driving the vehicle but the person whose life is at stake because of such an act. A minor driving under the influence of alcohol and causing an accident is fatal but the most important part is if he/she has caused someone any physical or legal injury. If such offence has happened and any injury is sustained by any person then the minor shall be held liable for punishment and compensation. Most of the time such injury is so dangerous that it leads to the death of the victim that leaves the family of the victim in complete shock. The information about such accidents causes them to mental breakdown and there is a high chance of getting into a state of nervous shock. The victims have to lose their precious life because of some underage person driving. To assist them there are many NGOs like MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) working to help the victims of drunk driving.

Strengthening Legal Provisions and Amendments to the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988

The government also amended the Motor Vehicle Act,1988 in 2019 to increase the fines and compensation of offences committed under the section. According to section 164 of the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988 if any person does an act that results in the second party being affected by death or grievous hurt shall be liable to pay rupees five lakhs for death and two and a half lakhs for grievous hurt. Such an amount would go to the victims who have suffered any loss of lives or have incurred any injury because of such an act.
The victim has a right to get justice for such a crime committed against him. The legal system in India is not developed for such offenses where an underage person kills someone while driving while drunk.

Pune-Porsche case

The recent case that happened in Pune is a prime example of such an offense. On May 19th a 17-year-old boy was heavily intoxicated and was rashly driving a 2.5 crore electric Porsche car when he hit a bike resulting in the death of two software engineers (Aneesh Awadhiya and Ashwini Koshta). Later the accused boy was granted bail within 15 hours of the accident by the juvenile justice board which ordered him to write a 300-word essay and was put under the supervision and care of his parents and grandmother. This decision by the court resulted in a heated topic on social media and in the public mind. The public was furious that a rich boy could get away with the murder of two citizens by writing one 300-word essay. The nationwide uproar on this issue, the court amended the bail on 22nd may he was put into custody.

Legal Loopholes and Accountability

Later to this arrest the police also arrested the teen’s 50-year-old realtor father, who was in judicial remand in another case, for an investigation into the alleged swapping of the blood sample. The juvenile’s 77-year-old grandfather, who heads the family-run real estate group, is accused of abducting the driver who was accompanying the minor at the time and forcing him to take the blame for the accident that killed two software engineers, Aneesh Awadhiya and Ashwini Koshta. The grandfather is currently in judicial custody.

The 49-year-old mother of the juvenile accused in Pune’s Porsche accident case Saturday became the third person from his family — after his father and grandfather — to be arrested by the police. She is accused of giving her blood to be swapped with that of her 17-year-old son, which had been collected after the incident to test for alcohol.

The trial is not over as of now but it is clear that there are many loopholes from which the rich and powerful people of the society try to escape the criminal liability of their actions. The two lives lost during the incident have caused the whole nation to mourn and the family of those who got trauma for life when they lost their loved ones. No money can give the lost lives to their families, their emotional breakdowns and physical conditions are at the lowest.

COMPARATIVE RECOMMENDATIONS

There are many gaps in the recent administration and laws regarding underage drunk driving, victim protection, and victim compensation. Many amendments can be made to enhance the support and the legal system across the country.

Strengthen underage laws and enforcement

In India, every state has a different minimum age of drinking but there should be a strict policy of minimum age of consumption and purchase of alcohol of 21 years across the country. There should be a zero-tolerance policy for drunk driving and suspension of the license if found drunk and driving. Parents or guardians should avoid providing vehicles to their kids who have not attained the age of majority or until they have an authorized license to drive any such vehicles.

Improvement of victim support and compensation

Policies should be made in favor of the victims and the government should back them financially until the crisis has ended A huge compensation should be provided by the accused or the government to the families of the victims. The government should create well-funded schemes to help with health care, emergency response teams, counseling, etc.

CONCLUSION

Underage drunk driving is a persistent threat to public health, with devastating consequences for victims, the accused, and the whole of society. This research has analyzed the systematic failure of laws and the increasing number of underage people getting drunk and driving, playing with their own lives and the lives of other people as well.
The findings of this research underscore an urgent need to review the policies and the laws in the current framework of India. Thus, many reforms should be made to reduce this issue on a wide scale.
For this, the policymakers, the enforcement officers, and the public at large should participate collaboratively to make sure cases like the Pune Road accident won’t happen and many lives can be saved. Juveniles should avoid alcohol as much as possible for a better and secure future.